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ned /sat 31/08

REMOVE THESE OBJECTS FROM YOUR CHILDREN'S BEDROOM…THEY ATTRACT DEMONS
Parents often want their children’s bedrooms to be havens of peace, safety, and rest. Yet according to many Catholic exorcists and deliverance ministers, the very items parents allow into those sacred spaces can open dangerous spiritual doors. Some objects, though seemingly harmless, carry occult symbols, demonic associations, or dark cultural influences that invite unrest, nightmares, and even demonic oppression. In this detailed guide, drawing on the wisdom of Catholic tradition, testimonies from exorcists, and the lived experiences of families, we will explore what not to keep in your children’s rooms. Just as importantly, we will also learn what you should include, objects of light, protection, and blessing that help anchor your children in God’s grace. Part One: Understanding the Spiritual Battlefield 1. The Invisible War St. Paul reminds us in Ephesians 6:12: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” While we often focus on the physical safety of our homes, locking doors, installing alarms, we sometimes forget the reality of the invisible war for our souls. Children, with their openness, innocence, and impressionability, are especially vulnerable to spiritual attacks. Exorcists teach that demons exploit open doors. These “doors” are often sins, curses, or spiritual compromises made in ignorance. Objects linked to the occult or darkness act like magnets that attract unclean spirits. When left unchecked in children’s bedrooms, they can disturb sleep, cause irrational fears, and even foster rebellion or despair. Part Two: The Objects That Attract Darkness Below are some of the most common objects exorcists warn against. 1. Occult Books and Games Even seemingly “fun” or “fantasy” books that involve spells, witchcraft, or sorcery can be problematic. While literature itself isn’t evil, many exorcists warn that books glamorizing the occult normalize spiritual practices condemned by Scripture (Deuteronomy 18:10-12). This also includes role-playing games that encourage spell-casting, summoning spirits, or invoking false gods. Father Gabriele Amorth, former Chief Exorcist of Rome, often warned about games like these opening children’s curiosity toward real occult practices. 2. Dreamcatchers and Occult Symbols Dreamcatchers, though marketed as decorative or cultural, have pagan origins tied to animistic and shamanistic practices. Exorcists warn that when hung in bedrooms, they are not neutral decorations but spiritual invitations. Likewise, posters or jewelry with pentagrams, “all-seeing eye,” or horoscopes carry ties to occultism and should never be present in a child’s sacred space. 3. Horror Movie Posters and Demonic Imagery Children sometimes decorate their walls with posters from horror films, monsters, or skulls. Such images do not promote courage or strength, they glorify fear and death. Exorcists emphasize that repeated exposure desensitizes the soul, drawing fascination toward evil rather than repulsion. Objects such as Ouija boards, even marketed as toys, are perhaps the most dangerous of all. Countless testimonies reveal that children who played with Ouija boards began experiencing hauntings, possession attempts, and torment that only sacramental intervention could resolve. 4. Music and Media with Dark Roots Posters, albums, or merchandise from artists known for satanic or occult affiliations also invite spiritual unrest. Exorcists frequently note how demonic activity increases in homes where children consume music filled with explicit blasphemy, rebellion, or occult rituals. Even technology itself, while neutral, becomes dangerous if filled with ungodly content. A phone or tablet filled with violent, sexualized, or occult media can be an open door for evil.

hn Pope John Paul II publicly and consistently taught that homosexual acts are contrary to God’s law and the truth about human love. He reminded the faithful that the promotion of the LGBTQ ideology stands against the divine plan of creation and the dignity of the human person. Any Catholic who chooses to promote this error departs from the teaching of Christ and opens themselves to the influence of the Evil One, rather than the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Dnevna Čitanja

Koji se uzvisuje, bit će ponižen, a koji se ponizuje, bit će uzvišen.
31 kolovoza, 2025

XXII. tjedan kroz godinu (31. kolovoza 2025.)

Prvo čitanje:
Sir 3,17-18.20.28-29

Ponizi se i naći ćeš milost u Gospodina.
Čitanje Knjige Sirahove
Sine moj, budi krotak u poslu svojem,
i bit ćeš voljeniji nego onaj koji darove dijeli.
Što si veći, to se većma ponizi
i naći ćeš milost u Gospodina.
Iako je velika moć u Gospodina,
on prima počast poniznih.
Nema lijeka bolesti oholnikâ,
jer se opačina u njima ukorijenila.
Srce razborita čovjeka razmišlja o izrekama,
i pažljivo uho želja je mudračeva.
Riječ Gospodnja.



Otpjevni psalam:
Ps 68,4-5ac.6-7ab.10-11

Pripjev: U dobroti, Bože, ti si pripravio dom siromahu.
Pravedni neka se raduju,
neka klikću pred Bogom,
neka kliču od radosti.
Pjevajte Bogu, slavite mu ime!
Ime mu je Gospodin!

Otac sirotâ, branitelj udovicâ,
Bog je u svom svetom prebivalištu.
Napuštene Bog će okućiti,
sužnje izvesti na sretnu slobodu.

Dažd obilan pustio si, Bože, na baštinu svoju,
okrijepio je umornu.
Stado se tvoje nastani u njoj,
u dobroti, Bože, ti je pripravi siromahu.



Drugo čitanje:
Hebr 12,18-19.22-24a

Pristupili ste gori Sionu i gradu Boga živoga.
Poslanice Hebrejima
Braćo: Niste pristupili opipljivoj gori i usplamtjelu ognju, ni mraku, tami i vihoru, ni ječanju trublje i tutnjavi riječî. – Koji su je slušali, zamoliše da im se više ne govori. – Nego, vi ste pristupili gori Sionu i gradu Boga živoga, Jeruzalemu nebeskom, nebrojenim tisućama anđela, svečanom skupu, Crkvi prvorođenaca zapisanih na nebu, Bogu, sucu sviju, dusima savršenih pravednika i posredniku novog Saveza – Isusu.
Riječ Gospodnja.



Evanđelje:
Lk 14,1.7-14

Koji se uzvisuje, bit će ponižen, a koji se ponizuje, bit će uzvišen.
Čitanje svetog Evanđelja po Luki
Jedne subote Isus dođe u kuću nekoga prvaka farizejskog na objed. Promatrajući kako uzvanici biraju prva mjesta, kaza im prispodobu:
»Kada te tko pozove na svadbu, ne sjedaj na prvo mjesto da ne bi možda bio pozvan koji časniji od tebe, te ne dođe onaj koji je pozvao tebe i njega i ne rekne ti: ’Ustupi mjesto ovome.’ Tada ćeš, postiđen, morati zauzeti posljednje mjesto. Nego kad budeš pozvan, idi i sjedni na posljednje mjesto pa, kada dođe onaj koji te pozvao, da ti rekne: ’Prijatelju, pomakni se naviše!’ Bit će ti to tada na čast pred svim sustolnicima, jer – svaki koji se uzvisuje, bit će ponižen, a koji se ponizuje, bit će uzvišen.«
A i onome koji ga pozva, kaza: »Kad priređuješ objed ili večeru, ne pozivaj svojih prijatelja, ni braće, ni rodbine, ni bogatih susjeda, da ne bi možda i oni tebe pozvali i tako ti uzvratili. Nego kad priređuješ gozbu, pozovi siromahe, sakate, hrome, slijepe. Blago tebi jer oni ti nemaju čime uzvratiti. Uzvratit će ti se doista o uskrsnuću pravednih.«
Riječ Gospodnja.

Izvor: HILP

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Sveti Rajmund Nonat

Biskup Barron odgovorio gradonačelniku koji se protivio molitvi nakon pucnjave u Minneapolisu

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Halonen: Det tror jag är viktigast för Putin

Tarja Halonen är fortfarande omtalad för sin goda kontakt med Vladimir Putin. Jag växte upp i en gammal arbetarstadsdel, så jag var van vid samma språk som han, säger Finlands expresident.

Uppgradera inför skolstarten

Alina

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Läs mer:

Stubb: Hoppas att Trump ledsnar på Putin snart. Realtid

Tarja Halonen besökte nyligen Sverige, för att delta i en högnivåkonferens på Artipelag utanför Stockholm. I en intervju med TT berättar hon hur en hård uppväxt, i arbetarkvarteren i Berghäll i Helsingfors, kom till användning när hon som president åren 2000-2012 träffade Putin.

Jag vet hur grabbarna snackar. Och han har lite av samma bakgrund, från S:t Petersburg. Han var ingen duktig gosse, säger hon med en blick ut över Värmdös skärgårdslandskap.

Alla åkte till Moskva
Som politiker träffade Halonen Putin många gånger, och i backspegeln har hon bitvis fått bister kritik för deras goda kontakt. Men hon påminner om att i princip alla europeiska kollegor tänkte likadant då.

Annons

Har du en portfölj på 3 miljoner kr? Här är 6 tips att tänka på

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Hon ser dåtidens Putin som ”en annan man” än dagens. Som exempel nämner Halonen att han visade förståelse för hennes linje om det orättmätiga i att Sovjetunionen lade beslag på Karelen och andra områden i östra Finland i samband med andra världskriget.

Då tyckte Putin att den perioden, andra världskriget, vinterkriget och fortsättningskriget, kanske inte var den finaste tiden i Rysslands krigshistoria.

Men nu beter han sig på precis samma sätt, fortsätter Halonen, syftande på att den ryska regimen vägrar kompromissa om de ukrainska landområden den intagit i sitt anfallskrig.

Tror Krim viktigast
Hon betonar att hon inte deltar i dagens politik, men gör ändå sin bedömning av vad Putin själv tycker.

Jag har känslan, bara en känsla, av vad han skulle tycka räcker.

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Men Halonen menar alltså att en av dessa regioner är närmast Putins hjärta.

Jag tror att kanske är Krim allra viktigast, säger hon.

Men tillägger:

Jag är inte säker. Och det är bättre att inte störa de nuvarande politikernas arbete.

Ingen kontakt
Halonen nämner också att hon senast träffade den ryske ledaren för drygt tio år sedan, då hon hade slutat som president. Hon minns att de pratade om det vid tillfället högaktuella kriget i Syrien..

Putin var missnöjd med Finlands kritik mot ryska bombningar, men att de då, liksom flera andra gånger genom åren, bara kunde enas om att de var oeniga.

Jag vet inte hur Putin tänker i dag. Vi har ingen kontakt.

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Dnevna Čitanja

Hoću da mi odmah dadeš na pladnju glavu Ivana Krstitelja!
29 kolovoza, 2025

XXI. tjedan kroz godinu (29. kolovoza 2025.)

Prvo čitanje:
Jr 1,17-19

Govori im sve što ti ja zapovjedim: ne dršci pred njima.
Čitanje Knjige proroka Jeremije
U one dane:
Dođe mi riječ Gospodnja:
»Ti bedra svoja sad opaši,
ustaj pa ćeš im govoriti
sve što ti ja zapovjedim.
Ne dršći pred njima
da ne bih morao učiniti
te uzdršćeš pred njima.
Danas te, evo, postavljam
kao grad utvrđeni,
kao stup željezni,
ko zidinu brončanu
protiv sve zemlje:
protiv kraljeva i knezova judejskih,
svećenika i naroda ove zemlje.
I borit će se s tobom,
al’ te neće nadvladati
jer ja sam s tobom da te izbavim.«
Riječ Gospodnja.



Otpjevni psalam:
Ps 71,1-6b.15ab.17

Pripjev: Usta će moja razglašavati pravednost tvoju.
Tebi se, Gospodine, utječem,
ne daj da se ikada postidim!
U pravdi me svojoj spasi i izbavi,
prikloni uho k meni i spasi me!

Budi mi hrid utočišta i čvrsta utvrda spasenja:
jer ti si stijena i utvrda moja.
Bože moj, istrgni me iz ruke zlotvora,
iz šake silnika i tlačitelja.

Jer ti si, o Gospodine, ufanje moje,
Gospodine, uzdanje od moje mladosti!
Na te se oslanjam od utrobe;
ti si mi zaštitnik od majčina krila:

Usta će moja razglašavati pravednost tvoju,
povazdan pomoć tvoju.
Bože, ti mi bijaše učitelj od mladosti moje,
i sve do sada naviještam čudesa tvoja.



Evanđelje:
Mk 6,17-29

Hoću da mi odmah dadeš na pladnju glavu Ivana Krstitelja!
Čitanje svetog Evanđelja po Marku
U ono vrijeme: Herod bijaše dao uhititi Ivana i svezati ga u tamnici zbog Herodijade, žene brata svoga Filipa, kojom se bio oženio. Budući da je Ivan govorio Herodu: »Ne smiješ imati žene brata svojega!«, Herodijada ga mrzila i htjela ga ubiti, ali nije mogla jer se Herod bojao Ivana; znao je da je on čovjek pravedan i svet pa ga je štitio. I kad god bi ga slušao, uvelike bi se zbunio, a rado ga je slušao.
l dođe zgodan dan kad Herod o svom rođendanu priredi gozbu svojim velikašima, časnicima i prvacima galilejskim. Uđe kći Herodijadina i zaplesa. Svidje se Herodu i sustolnicima. Kralj reče djevojci: »Zaišti od mene što god hoćeš i dat ću ti!« I zakle joj se: »Što god zaišteš od mene, dat ću ti, pa bilo to i pol mojega kraljevstva.« Ona iziđe pa će svojoj materi: »Što da zaištem?« A ona će: »Glavu Ivana Krstitelja!« I odmah žurno uđe kralju te zaište: »Hoću da mi odmah dadeš na pladnju glavu Ivana Krstitelja!«
Ožalosti se kralj, ali zbog zakletve i sustolnika ne htjede je odbiti. Kralj odmah posla krvnika i naredi da donese glavu Ivanovu. On ode, odrubi mu glavu u tamnici, donese je na pladnju i dade je djevojci, a djevojka materi. Kad za to dočuše Ivanovi učenici, dođu i uzmu njegovo tijelo i polože ga u grob.
Riječ Gospodnja.

Izvor: HILP

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Confession and the science of fresh starts
CONFESSION-SACREMENT-RECONCILIATION-GODONG-FR563413B.jpg
Philippe Lissac / Godong

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Daniel Esparza – published on 08/30/25
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Confession gives us the very milestone psychologists say we need. It draws a clear line between before and after.
Have you ever promised yourself, “I’ll start on Monday”? You’re not alone. A study by Hengchen Dai, Katherine Milkman, and Jason Riis (2014) found that people are more likely to begin new habits on “fresh start days.” Mondays, birthdays, the start of a new month, a new year — these moments feel like mental reset buttons, giving us the courage to try again.

It’s a fascinating insight into human psychology: We need markers that separate the past from the future. We long for beginnings that tell us, “That was then, this is now.”

For Catholics, this resonates in a unique way with the sacrament of confession. While the calendar offers symbolic fresh starts, confession is more than symbolic. In the sacrament, we don’t erase history — our past choices remain part of us, and habits may still take time and effort to undo. But confession creates a decisive turning point. It reconciles us to God and to the community, and restores our ability to walk forward with new strength.

The Catechism puts it beautifully: “It is called the sacrament of Reconciliation, because it imparts to the sinner the love of God who reconciles” (CCC 1424). That reconciliation is itself a kind of new beginning — not because the past disappears, but because God’s mercy transforms how we carry it.

Even for non-Catholics, the principle is familiar. Think of how powerful it feels to apologize sincerely and be forgiven by a loved one. The memory of what happened doesn’t vanish, but the relationship changes: Trust can be rebuilt, and the weight of guilt is lifted. Confession does this at the deepest level of our spiritual lives.

In fact, confession gives us the very milestone psychologists say we need. It draws a clear line between before and after. Whatever progress we hope to make — whether growing in patience, overcoming resentment, or beginning healthier spiritual habits — confession marks the moment when the struggle is no longer carried alone. Grace gives us fresh strength to begin again.

And just as with “fresh start days,” confession should be paired with new resolutions — a true purpose of amendment. After receiving absolution, many find it fruitful to choose one concrete step: a daily prayer, a word of kindness, a practice of self-control. These small beginnings, sustained by grace, slowly reshape habits that once seemed unbreakable.

The best part? You don’t need to wait for Monday or the first of the month. The fresh start that confession offers is available at any time. Science confirms what faith already teaches: We flourish when given the chance to start anew. And in confession, that chance is never out of reach.

This Capuchin saint spent 15 hours a day hearing confessions
Read also :
This Capuchin saint spent 15 hours a day hearing confessions
Priest: We notice all young people ask for Confession
Read also :
Priest: We notice all young people ask for Confession

Saturday, August 30

Blessed Virgin Mary

Prayer for the Morning

Through our Blessed Mother Mary, we poor banished children of Eve
entrust ourselves to you, O Lord.

Glory to the Father…. Alleluia!

HymnMeter: 87 87 D
This hymn can be sung to the tune used for
Sing of Mary

Holy Mary, we implore thee,
By thy purity divine;
Help us bending here before thee,
Help us truly to be thine.
Thou unfolding wide the portals
Of the kingdom in the skies,
Holy Virgin, hast to mortals
Shown the land of paradise.

Thou, when deepest night infernal
Had for ages shrouded man,
Gavest us that Light eternal
Promised since the world began.
God in thee hath showered plenty
On the hungry and the weak;
Sending back the mighty empty,
Setting up on high the meek.

Teach, oh teach us, holy Mother,
How to conquer every sin,
How to love and help each other,
How the prize of life to win.
Thou to whom a child was given,
Greater than the sons of men,
Coming down from highest heaven,
To create this world again.

Psalm 846-13

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,/ whose hope is the Lord. (Jer 17:7)

The papal motto of Saint John Paul II was Totus Tuus (“totally yours”). This statement of trust in the Blessed Virgin Mary is not an unimportant factor in reflecting on the life of this great pope. John Paul, following the Marian piety of Saint Louis de Montfort, entrusted all his prayers and works to the Blessed Virgin Mary. We would do well to entrust all our cares and our very lives to her, for she is “the safest, easiest, shortest, and most perfect way” to Jesus and to sanctity (Treatise on the True Devotion to Mary 55).

They are happy, whose strength is in you,
in whose hearts are the roads to Zion.

As they go through the Bitter Valley
they make it a place of springs,
the autumn rain covers it with blessings.
They walk with ever growing strength,
they will see the God of gods in Zion.

O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer,
give ear, O God of Jacob.
Turn your eyes, O God, our shield,
look on the face of your anointed.

One day within your courts
is better than a thousand elsewhere.
The threshold of the house of God
I prefer to the dwellings of the wicked.

For the Lord God is a rampart, a shield;
he will give us his favor and glory.
The Lord will not refuse any good
to those who walk without blame.

Lord, God of hosts,
happy the man who trusts in you!

Glory to the Father….

Word of GodJohn 19:25-27

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

Jesus is Mary’s only son, but her spiritual motherhood
extends to all men whom indeed he came to save.
(CCC 501)

Canticle of Zechariah

She reaches out her hands to the poor,/ and extends her arms to the needy. (Prv 31:20)

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet
of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father…

Intercessions

In union with Mary our Mother, we entrust these prayers to our heavenly Father.

R/Lord, hear our prayer.

That, like Mary, we may trust completely in divine providence,
– we pray: R/

For an increase in Marian devotion,
– we pray: R/

For a greater closeness to Jesus Christ,
– we pray: R/

That we may never stray from the path that leads to our Father’s house,
– we pray: R/

Personal intentions

Our Father….

God our Father, you gave us the Blessed Virgin Mary as our mother. We thank you for the great goodness of this sublime gift. May we ever become more faithful children of this worthy Mother, that, being led by her maternal hand through the bitter valley of this life, we may arrive safely upon the heights of your heavenly Zion. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen. And today we celebrate…Sunday, August 31

Saint Raymond Nonnatus

Protector of Babies and Expectant Mothers (1204-1240) Mercedarian Priest

Wikipedia PD

His life:

+ Raymond was born to a noble family in Portella, Spain. His nickname of Nonnatus (“not born”) refers to his birth by Caesarean section, his mother having died as she was giving birth.

+ Although he felt drawn to religious life, his father made him oversee the family’s flocks and holdings. Raymond responded by spending time with the workers (rather than overseeing them) and his father eventually relented and gave the Raymond the permission that he desired.

+ Raymond chose to enter the Order of Our Lady of Mercy (the Mercedarians) and was clothed in the religious habit by the order’s founder, Saint Peter Nolasco. The Mercedarians had a special vocation of ransoming Christians enslaved by Muslims and Raymond embraced this charism. He was eventually imprisoned when he offered to take the place of another Christian.

+ He was tireless in proclaiming the Christian Faith, even while in prison, and to prevent him from this, his captors bored holes in his lips and sealed his mouth with a padlock. After being repeatedly tortured, he was eventually ransomed and was able to return to Spain in 1239.

+ Raymond was created a cardinal but continued to live as a humble religious. He died on August 31, 1240, as he was making his way to Rome on papal business. Canonized in 1657, he is honored as a patron saint of expectant mothers and babies and as a protector in childbirth.

For prayer and reflection:

“Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”—John 8:12

Spiritual bonus:

On August 31, the Church also honors the memory of Saint Joseph of Arimathea and Saint Nicodemus. Leaders among the Jewish community in Jerusalem, Joseph provided a tomb and, with Nicodemus (whose encounter with Jesus is recounted in John 3), helped prepare the body of Jesus for burial (see John 19). Later popular legends purport that Joseph brought the Holy Grail to England.

Prayer

Lord,
in Saint Raymond Nonnatus,
faithful worshiper of the Eucharist
and loyal son of the Virgin Mary,
you have given a fearless redeemer of Christian captives to your Church.
Faithful to the light of the Holy Spirit
may we follow the example of his unbounded charity
in sharing the trials of the oppressed.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(from the Mercedarian supplement to the Roman Missal)

Saint profiles prepared by Father Silas Henderson, S.D.S.SUNDAY, AUGUST 31

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayer for the Morning

God almighty dwells among us.
Let us adore him!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!

HymnMeter: 76 76 D
This hymn can be sung to the tune used for
Now Fades All Earthly Splendor

Jerusalem the golden,
With milk and honey blest,
Beneath your contemplation
Sink heart and voice oppressed.
I know not, O I know not,
What joys await us there,
What radiancy of glory,
What bliss beyond compare.

They stand, those halls of Zion,
All jubilant with song,
And bright with many an angel,
And all the martyr throng;
The Prince is ever in them,
The daylight is serene.
The pastures of the blessed
Are decked in glorious sheen.

Brief life is here our portion,
Brief sorrow, short-lived care;
The life that knows no ending,
The tearless life, is there.
O happy retribution!
Short toil, eternal rest;
For mortals and for sinners,
A mansion with the blest.

Strive, man, to win that glory;
Toil, man, to gain that light;
Send hope before to grasp it,
Till hope be lost in sight.
Exult, O dust and ashes,
The Lord shall be your part:
His only, his forever
You shall be, and you are.

CanticleEphesians 1:3-8a

I will fix a place for my people Israel; I will plant them so that they may dwell in their place without further disturbance. (2 Sm 7:10)

True happiness is dwelling with God. This happiness is not only in the future in heaven, but can be realized in the here and now. When we strive for holiness we begin to live the life of heaven here on earth. Let us strive for unity with the Holy Trinity and become truly holy. It is our baptismal birthright.

Praised be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has bestowed on us in Christ
every spiritual blessing in the heavens.

God chose us in him
before the world began
to be holy
and blameless in his sight.

He predestined us
to be his adopted sons through Jesus Christ,
such was his will and pleasure,
that all might praise the glorious favor
he has bestowed on us in his beloved.

In him and through his blood, we have been redeemed,
and our sins forgiven,
so immeasurably generous
is God’s favor to us.

Word of GodDeuteronomy 4:7-9

What great nation is there that has gods so close to it as the Lord, our God, is to us whenever we call upon him? Or what great nation has statutes and decrees that are as just as this whole law which I am setting before you today?

However, take care and be earnestly on your guard not to forget the things which your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your memory as long as you live, but teach them to your children and to your children’s children.

Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race.
He will dwell with them and they will be his people
and God himself will always be with them.
(Rv 21:3)

Canticle of Zechariah

May Christ dwell in your hearts through faith. (cf. Eph 3:17)

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet
of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father…

Intercessions

We earnestly seek to dwell with God at all times. So we pray:

R/Father, draw us close to you.

When we cannot see the way ahead,
– and are filled with fear and doubt: R/

When we feel alone,
– and yearn for your guiding hand: R/

When we feel your joy,
– and want to take pleasure in your love: R/

Personal intentions

Our Father….

Father of holiness, great is your generosity to us your servants. May we draw ever closer to you in our desire for sanctity, that we may one day stand before you on the holy mountain of Zion. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.Suggested Prayer of the Faithful

(Each local community should compose its own Universal Prayer, but may find inspiration in the texts proposed here.)

Lifting up our hearts in prayer, we call upon the name of God as we now turn to the Father and ask:

For the renewal of the Church and an ever greater commitment to Jesus, the Bridegroom.

That those in civil authority dedicate themselves to justice, peace, authentic freedom, and the generous defense of the poor.

For blessings on all students and teachers as they begin a new school year.

For all who are lonely, anxious, depressed, or suffering from emotional burdens: that they may know with greater conviction that the Lord is close to them.

For the unemployed and all who are in financial difficulty.

For the grace this week to grow in humility and charity.

Loving Father, you are our help. Your kindness is a greater good than life. May we bless you in our daily lives, always calling upon your name. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.meditation of the day

Divine Manners

Today’s Gospel would seem at first sight to be no more than a piece of worldly wisdom or a page from a secular book of manners in which the reader is advised to follow an exaggerated form of modesty. In fact…manners or good behavior cannot be separated from Christian morals, since Christianity cannot succeed where ordinary humanity is absent…. The Biblical authors always had the task of trying to prevent human manners from becoming purely external and of making them deeper and more central in man’s life. This is clear from [the book of] Sirach, whose author speaks, in his instruction about good behavior, of the contrast between pride and humility and between self-glorification and readiness to love others.

In the parable about choosing places at table, Jesus taught at the deepest possible level. [It is] a parable of the history of the world, in which a ruthless struggle for power has always taken place with little thought for the fate of others. God, who entered human history in Jesus Christ himself, does not participate in this struggle. All his life, from Bethlehem and Nazareth to Golgotha, Jesus took the lowest place. What he says in this parable is verified in the whole of his life and suffering. He was always on the side of the lowest and the last; and through him those who are the lowest and the last become the highest and the first. Indeed, he became so completely identified in his life and teaching with the lowest place that he has made himself present with us, not only in the Eucharist, but also in the least of men: I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me…. As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.

These words of the Lord take us further and further into the heart of Christian life. The story begins with ordinary manners, which form the point of departure. The next step is that we have to learn not to reduce manners to an empty and dishonest structure [and then to find] unity with the lowest and the last who is really the highest and the first, the Redeemer.

The one who invites us to his table to share in the Eucharist wants to lead us to a more and more completely Eucharistic life. In this way, we shall find him more and more easily on the way of everyday life and thus be also on the way toward his eternal wedding feast, where those who are lowest and last will be forever the highest and the first.

Pope Benedict XVI

Benedict XVI († 2022) reigned as pope from 2005 until 2013. / From Seeking God’s Face. © 2020 by Cluny, P.O. Box 1664, Providence, RI 02901. http://www.clunymedia.com. Used with permission.Prayer for the Evening

God is the Savior of the poor.
Let us praise him!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,
is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!

HymnMeter: SMD
This hymn can be sung to the tune used for
Crown Him with Many Crowns

Wide open are thy hands,
Paying with more than gold
The awful debt of guilty men,
Forever and of old.
Ah, let me grasp those hands,
That we may never part,
And let the power of their blood
Sustain my fainting heart.

Wide open are thine arms,
A fallen world to embrace;
To take to love and endless rest
Our whole forsaken race.
Lord, I am sad and poor,
But boundless is thy grace;
Give me the soul-transforming joy
For which I seek thy face.

Draw all my mind and heart
Up to thy throne on high,
And let thy sacred cross exalt
My spirit to the sky.
To these, thy mighty hands,
My spirit I resign;
Living, I live alone to thee,
Dying, alone am thine.

Psalm 1012-18

He sins who despises the hungry;/ but happy is he who is kind to the poor! (Prv 14:21)

Charity toward the poor is fundamental to our Christian faith. We are to give generously to those who do not have the basic necessities of life. This means not only clothing and shelter, but also love, respect, and kindness. We may even find someone among our own friends and family who is suffering for want of our love.

Arise then, Lord, lift up your hand!
O God, do not forget the poor!
Why should the wicked spurn the Lord
and think in his heart: “He will not punish”?

But you have seen the trouble and sorrow,
you note it, you take it in hand.
The helpless trusts himself to you;
for you are the helper of the orphan.

Break the power of the wicked and the sinner!
Punish his wickedness till nothing remains!
The Lord is king for ever and ever.
The heathen shall perish from the land he rules.

Lord, you hear the prayer of the poor;
you strengthen their hearts; you turn your ear
to protect the rights of the orphan and oppressed
so that mortal man may strike terror no more.

Glory to the Father….

Word of GodJames 2:1-5

My brothers, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. For if a man with gold rings on his fingers and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person in shabby clothes also comes in, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here, please,” while you say to the poor one, “Stand there,” or “Sit at my feet,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs?

Listen, my beloved brothers. Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him?

But the seventh year you shall let the land lie untilled
and unharvested, that the poor among you may eat of it
and the beasts of the field may eat what the poor leave. So also shall you do in regard to your vineyard
and your olive grove. (Ex 23:11)

Canticle of Mary

God has lifted up the lowly. (cf. Lk 1:52)

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior
for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his Name.

He has mercy on those who fear him
in every generation.

He has shown the strength of his arm,
he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,
and has lifted up the lowly.

He has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.

He has come to the help of his servant Israel
for he has remembered his promise of mercy,
the promise he made to our fathers,
to Abraham and his children for ever.

Glory to the Father…

Intercessions

We are all poor before the throne of God, and so we pray:

R/Lord, help us in our poverty.

When we are wanting in charity,
– and callous toward others: R/

When we have been hurt by those we love,
– and neglected by those who should help us: R/

When we have ignored the poor,
– and allowed them to suffer: R/

Personal intentions

Our Father….

May Christ dwell in our hearts through faith, and may charity be the root and foundation of our life. Amen. (cf. Eph 3:17)

Marian Antiphon

Hail, Queen of heaven, Mother of the King of angels;
O Mary, flower of virgins, even as the rose and the lily,
pour forth your prayers to the Lord for the salvation
of the faithful.

Translated by James Monti

Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae;
vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.
Ad te clamamus, exsules filii Evae.
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
in hac lacrimarum valle.

Eia ergo, advocata nostra,
illos tuos misericordes oculos
ad nos converte.
Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui,
nobis post hoc exsilium ostende.
O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria.

Hail, holy Queen, mother of mercy,
our life, our sweetness, and our hope.
To you do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.
To you do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, O most gracious advocate,
your eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile
show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

V/ Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,
R/ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.Lectio Divina

A Prayerful Reading of Sacred Scripture

The Gospel for the Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke 14:1, 7-14

On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees, and the people there were observing him carefully.

Out of mercy, Jesus chooses to enter into this home, even though he knows that unfriendly eyes will watch his every move. He has no need to guess their intentions: “Jesus knew their thoughts” (Lk 5:22). All the more, then, does his visit reveal his goodness. “Although our Lord knew the malice of the Pharisees, yet he became their guest, that he might benefit by his words and miracles those who were present” (Saint Cyril of Alexandria). Upon entering, Jesus first heals a man sick with dropsy (Lk 14:2-6), for “it is lawful to do good on the sabbath” (Mt 12:12). Next, he offers a parable to those in the room.

He told a parable to those who had been invited, noticing how they were choosing the places of honor at the table. “When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not recline at table in the place of honor. A more distinguished guest than you may have been invited by him, and the host who invited both of you may approach you and say, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then you would proceed with embarrassment to take the lowest place.”

Elsewhere in the Gospels, Jesus blames the scribes and the Pharisees for coveting a variety of status symbols, including “places of honor at banquets” (Mt 23:6-7). Here, however, he places his teaching in a specific and unexpected context: a wedding banquet. None of the guests are getting married, so why is Jesus thinking about a wedding?

The truth is that Jesus, the Bridegroom, is always thinking about a wedding, and the guests whom he has invited. “Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb” (Rv 19:9). Our Lord instructs us not about polite table manners but about our approach to heaven: “As the Evangelist calls this admonition a parable, we must briefly examine its mystical meaning. Whosoever being bidden has come to the marriage feast of Christ’s Church…let him not exalt himself as higher than others by boasting of his merits” (Saint Bede).

“Rather, when you are invited, go and take the lowest place so that when the host comes to you he may say, ‘My friend, move up to a higher position.’ Then you will enjoy the esteem of your companions at the table. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The wise man waits humbly to receive even a place of worldly honor: “Claim no honor in the king’s presence, nor occupy the place of superiors;/ It is better to be told, ‘Come up closer!’ than to be humbled before the prince” (Prv 25: 6-7). But the same dynamic—the humiliation of the proud and the exaltation of the humble—also holds true for our relationship with God. Jesus will later repeat this teaching when he contrasts the proud prayer of a Pharisee and the humble prayer of a penitent tax collector (Lk 18:9-14).

As Jesus’ friends, we need not wait until heaven to reap the spiritual fruits of humble prayer before God. The parable applies “even in this life, for daily does God come to his marriage feast, despising the proud; and often giving to the humble…great gifts of his Spirit” (Saint Bede). Every friend of God learns to yearn for this humility: “I know, oh my God, that you humble the proud soul but to the one who humbles herself you give an eternity of glory. So I want to put myself in the last rank and to share your humiliations so as ‘to have a share with you’ in the kingdom of heaven” (Saint Thérèse of Lisieux).

Then 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 your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.”

After speaking to the guests, Jesus speaks to the one who called them together. Our generosity must imitate the generosity of God, who called us “out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Pt 2:9). Our God, by creating and redeeming us, has given us gifts we can never repay: “It is not possible to pay God as much as we owe him” (Saint Thomas Aquinas).

“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.”

Christians perform works of mercy, not in hopes of an earthly reward, but for Christ’s sake: “Let us not then bestow kindness on others under the hope of return. For this is a cold motive, and…such a friendship soon vanishes. But if you invite the poor, God, who never forgets, will be your debtor…. For the humbler our brother is, so much the more does Christ come through him and visit us” (Saint John Chrysostom).

Here, Jesus pronounces a beatitude for the generous host: Blessed indeed will you be. Like all the beatitudes, it conforms us to Jesus himself. The ultimate reward for Christian charity is in becoming like the God-man. This will happen at the resurrection of the righteous, when “our lowly body” will “conform with his glorified body,” and when “we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (Phil 3:21; 1 Jn 3:2).

Lord Jesus, make us like you, the generous Host,
and give us the humility to receive
your abundant mercy.