'Tis the Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter: Wikipedia-link.
'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint Isidore (circa 1070-1130, of Madrid; A.K.A. the Farmer): Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, & Wikipedia-link.
Commentary: Wayback Machine. Quoth the Holy Redeemer bulletin:
Known as Isidore the Farmer, he was a Spanish farm worker known for his piety toward the poor & animals. He is the Catholic patron saint of farmers & of Madrid, & of La Ceiba, Honduras.St. Isisdore & Bl. María were husband & wife, though after the death of their only child they lived chastely, as brother & sister.
'Tis also the festival of Blessed María de la Cabeza (died 1175, A.K.A. Maria Torriba): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Cassius of Clermont, Martyr (died circa 264), martyred by the Alemanni chieftain Chrocas: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link.
'Tis also the festival of Saints Bertha & Rupert of Bingen, Pilgrims (died circa 757 & 712-732), namesake of the Rupertsberg, site of his burial, after which Bertha established her hermitage there: Saint-link Bravo & Wikipedia-link Bravo, Saint-link Romeo & Wikipedia-link Romeo; Wikipedia-link Rupertsberg.
Commentary: Ss. Bertha & Rupert were mother & son.
'Tis also the festival of Blessed André Abellon, Priest, O.P. (1375-1450): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.
Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Easter
The Acts of the Apostles, chapter twelve, verse twenty-four thru chapter thirteen, verse five(a);
Psalm Sixty-seven, verses two & three, five, & six & eight;
The Gospel according to John, chapter twelve, verses forty-four thru fifty.
Commentary: Reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, in today’s Gospel Jesus makes it clear once again that he and the Father are one. God is not a force or an energy or a spiritual presence occupying the deep background of your life; he’s not something that you can tap into when you feel like it. Nor is God a distant supreme being who organized the universe long ago and now leaves it to its own devices.Emeritus Benedict XVI), a subversive statement, for it undermines anyone or anything else’s claim to be absolute. No country, no president, no prime minister, no culture, no book, no person or political party is absolute—only God. The unity of God, for Jews and Christians, is not simply a theoretical claim; it is an enormously important existential claim. Jesus and the Father are one God who is the Lord of all creation.Video reflection by Jem Sullivan, Ph.D.: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Rather, God is the Lord. He is the commander, the ruler, the governor, the one who makes a demand and who then involves himself intimately in the affairs of the world.
More to it, this Lord is one. This is, as argued by Joseph Ratzinger (now Pope
Mass Readings—Optional Memorial of St. Isidore
The Book of Revelation, chapter nineteen, verses one & five thru nine(a);
Psalm One Hundred Three, verse one;
The Gospel according to Matthew, chapter eleven, verses twenty-five thru thirty.
Scripture Study—Day 91: Reflection Peak, Day 13
The Book of Genesis, chapter two, verses six & seven.
Commentary: Another Account of Creation (cont'd; Genesis, 2:6-7).
Papal Quote o' the Day
"quotIn the special manifestation to St. Margaret Mary, Christ pointed to His Heart as the symbol by which we are drawn to recognize & acknowledge His love. At the same time, He constituted it as a sign & pledge of His mercy & His grace for the needs of the Church in our time."Little Flower Quote o' the Day
—Pope Venerable Pius XII (1876-1958)
"Do not let your weakness make you unhappy. When, in the morning, we feel no courage or strength for the practice of virtue, it is really a grace: it is the time to 'lay the axe to the root of the tree,' relying on Jesus alone."Saint Quote o' the Day
—St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast day: 1 October)
"Picture the marriage feast of Cana. There our Blessed Lord is beyond the Jordan, gathering up His first disciples. Mary is already at the feast. The Lord comes with His new disciples, & Mary, who always knows our wants before we know them, says, “They have no wine.” They had water, the water of the Old Testament, but they had no wine. And Jesus replies, “Woman”—not mother—“Woman, what to me is to thee?” That is the way it is in the original. “My hour has not yet come.” The hour refers to His Passion & death, His combat with evil. Now He is equivalently saying to His Mother,“My dear Mother, you want Me to begin My public life, to declare Myself the Messiah & the Son of God. Do you realize that the moment I do that, your relationship to Me changes? You will then no longer be My Mother. You will then be the Mother of everyone whom I will redeem. You will be the universal Mother of all mankind. You will be the woman of Genesis. You will be the Mother of the living.” Mary’s heart must have burned at not hearing herself called “Mother.” So our Blessed Lord, it seems, anticipated His public life. It is not often that mothers send their sons to the battlefield. Mary did. If the Father sent the Son, the Mother would send the Son."
—Venerable Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
