"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."[John 6:68]
Tuesday of the Tenth week in Ordinary Time
Saints of the day:
Saint Ephrem the Syrian
Deacon, and Doctor of the Church
(c.306-373)
Deacon, and Doctor of the Church
(c.306-373)
Ephrem was of Syrian descent and the son of a citizen of Nisibis. While yet a young man, he went to the holy Bishop James, by whom he was baptized. In a short while, he made such progress in holiness and learning that he was appointed teacher of a flourishing school at Nisibis, a Mesopotamian city.
He was ordained deacon of the Church of Edessa, and refusing the priesthood out of humility, he was conspicuous with the splendor of every virtue and strove to acquire piety and religion by professing true wisdom.
His works, taken as a whole, are so infused with the bright light of his learning, that this holy man, even while yet living, was held in great honor and even considered a Doctor of the Church. He was noted, above all, for his great and tender devotion to the Immaculate Virgin.
Full of merits, he died at Edessa in Mesopotamia on the fourteenth of July, in the reign of Valens. Pope Benedict XV declared him, by a decree of the Congregation of Sacred Rites, to be a Doctor of the universal Church .
STS. PRIMUS and FELICIANUSMartyrs
(3rd century)
(3rd century)
These two martyrs were brothers, and lived in Rome, toward the latter part of the third century, for many years, mutually encouraging each other in the practice of all good works . They seemed to possess nothing but for the poor, and often spent both nights and days with the confessors in their dungeons, or at the places of their torments and execution. Some they encouraged to perseverance, others, who had fallen, they raised again, and they made themselves the servants of all in Christ, that all might attain to salvation through Him. Though their zeal was most remarkable, they had escaped the dangers of many bloody persecutions, and were grown old in the heroic exercises of virtue, when it pleased God to crown their labors with a glorious martyrdom.
The pagans raised so great an outcry against them that they were both apprehended and put in chains. They were inhumanly scourged, and then sent to a town twelve miles from Rome to be farther chastised, as avowed enemies to the gods. There they were cruelly tortured, first both together, afterward separately. But the grace of God strengthened them, and they were at length both beheaded on the 9th of June.
Tuesday of the Tenth week in Ordinary Time
Second Letter to the Corinthians 1:18 As surely as God is trustworthy, we don’t say “Yes” when we mean “No.” 19 For the Son of God, the Messiah Yeshua, who was proclaimed among you through us — that is, through me and Sila and Timothy — was not a yes-and-no man; on the contrary, with him it is always “Yes!” 20 For however many promises God has made, they all find their “Yes” in connection with him; that is why it is through him that we say the “Amen” when we give glory to God. 21 Moreover, it is God who sets both us and you in firm union with the Messiah; he has anointed us, 22 put his seal on us, and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee for the future.
Psalm 119: פ (Peh)
129 Your instruction is a wonder;
this is why I follow it.
130 Your words are a doorway that lets in light,
giving understanding to the thoughtless.
131 My mouth is wide open, as I pant
with longing for your mitzvot.
132 Turn to me, and show me your favor;
in keeping with [your] judgment for those who love your name.
133 Guide my footsteps by your word;
don’t let any kind of sin rule me.
135 Make your face shine on your servant,
and teach me your laws.
The Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ According to Saint Matthew 5:13 “You are salt for the Land. But if salt becomes tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything except being thrown out for people to trample on.
14 “You are light for the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Likewise, when people light a lamp, they don’t cover it with a bowl but put it on a lampstand, so that it shines for everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they may see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.
Tuesday of the Tenth week in Ordinary Time
Commentary of the day:
Saint Chromatius of Aquilaea (?-407), Bishop
Homilies on Saint Matthew’s Gospel, no.5, 1.3-4 : CCL 9, 405 (trans. cf breviary 11/06)
Therefore, that shining light which has been lit for our salvation must always shine in us. For we possess the lamp of the heavenly commandments and of the spirit of grace, of which David said: “Your law is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps 119[118],105)... We must not, then, hide this lamp of the law and of faith but should always set it up on the Church, as on a lamp-stand, for the salvation of many. In this way we too may enjoy the light of truth itself and all who believe may be enlightened.
____________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment