Saints + Scripture

'Tis the Optional Memorial of Saint John of Capistrano, Priest, O.F.M. (1386-1456): Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, & Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine. Quoth the Holy Redeemer bulletin:

Famous as a preacher, theologian, & inquisitor, he earned himself the nickname "the Soldier Saint" when in 1456 at age seventy he led a crusade against the invading Ottoman Empire at the siege of Belgrade with the Hungarian military commander John Hunyadi.

'Tis also the festival of Saint Ignatius of Constantinople, Bishop & Abbot (circa 798-877, A.K.A. Niketas): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link.

'Tis also the festival of Blessed Giovannangelo Porro, Priest & Hermit, O.S.M. (circa 1451-1505): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.

'Tis also the festival of Blessed Arnould Rèche, Religious, F.S.C. (1838-1890, A.K.A. Julian-Nicolas Rèche): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.

Scripture of This Day
Mass Readings—Tuesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
The Letter to the Ephesians, chapter two, verses twelve thru twenty-two;
Psalm Eighty-five, verses nine(a/b) & ten, eleven & twelve, & thirteen & fourteen;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter twelve, verses thirty-five thru thirty-eight.

Commentary: Reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel Jesus urges us to be ready for his second coming. It reminds me of John the Baptist preparing us: "Make ready the way of the Lord, clear him a straight path." He is saying that his job is to prepare for the mighty coming of the Lord. A change is coming, a revolution is on the way, a disaster (the destruction of the old) is about to happen. Prepare the way of the Lord.

And what is the manner of preparation? It is a baptism of repentance. Baptism—an immersion in water—reminded first-century Jews of the exodus, passing through the Red Sea, leaving the ways of slavery behind.

And repentance (metanoia), going beyond the mind that you have. How our minds are conditioned by the fallen world! How our expectations are shaped, stunted by what has gone before. The world of Tiberius and Pilate and Herod and Caiaphas has shaped our imagination. It’s time, John is saying, for a new mind, a new set of eyes, a new kind of expectation. God is about to act!

Be ready!

Video reflection by Father Jack Ledwon: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Mass Readings—Optional Memorial of St. John of Capistrano
The Second Letter to the Corinthians, chapter five, verses fourteen thru twenty;
Confer Psalm Sixteen, verse five(a);
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter nine, verses fifty-seven thru sixty-two.

Papal Quote o' This Day

"In prayer, we come to see the stark reality of our own poverty, the absolute need we have for a Savior. We discover in a more profound degree the many ways in which we ourselves are poor & needy, & thus we begin to feel an increasing solidarity with all the poor."
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, feast day: 22 October)

Little Flower Quote o' This Day

"If I cannot walk in paradise for the glory of Jesus, I prefer to remain in [this] exile."
—St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast day: 1 October)

Saint Quote o' This Day

"The way Jesus shows you is not easy. Rather, it is like a path winding up a mountain. Do not lose heart! The steeper the road, the faster it rises toward ever wider horizons!"
—Pope St. John Paul II the Great (1920-2005, feast day: 22 October)