The Popish Plot
vLent 2019: "Final Four 2019: Judgment"
Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Thursday of the Second Week of Lent
The Book of Jeremiah, chapter seventeen, verses five thru ten;
Psalm One, verses one & two, three, & four & six (& Psalm Forty, verse five[a]);
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter sixteen, verses nineteen thru thirty-one.
Commentary: Reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, today’s Gospel focuses on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man "dressed in purple garments and fine linen and dined sumptuously each day," while lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, "who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table. "Video reflection by Father Roger Lopez, O.F.M.: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
God is not pleased with this kind of economic inequality, and he burns with a passion to set things right. This theme came roaring up out of the Bible and into the Christian tradition, and it echoes up and down the centuries. Even though it makes us uncomfortable—and God knows it does, especially those of us who live in the most affluent society in the world—we can’t avoid it because it’s everywhere in the Bible.
St. Thomas Aquinas says that we must distinguish between ownership and use of private property. We have a right to ownership through our hard work, through our inheritance. Fair enough. But with regard to the use of those things—how we use them, why we use them—then, says Thomas, we must always be concerned first for the common good and not our own. This especially includes Lazarus at our gate: those who are suffering and most in need.
Reflect: How do you understand the "common good"? How do you use your personal property for that good?
Scripture Study—Exodus 90: Day 60
The Book of Exodus, chapter twenty-five, verses thirty-one thru forty.
Commentary: The Lampstand (Exodus, 25:31-40).
'Tis the commemoration of Saint Enda of Aran, Priest & Abbot (circa 450-530; A.K.A. Éanna, Endeus, etc.), founding abbot of the Abbey of Killeaney: Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Abbey.
Commentary: Wayback Machine. Brother of St. Fanchea of Rossory [1 January].
'Tis also the commemoration of Saint Nicholas of Flüe, Hermit (1417-1487, A.K.A. Brother Klaus): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link.
'Tis also the commemoration of Blessed Thomas Pilchard, Priest & Martyr (1557-1587, also spelt Pilcher), martyred in the reign of the English queen Elizabeth I, one of the Eighty-five Martyrs of England & Wales: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link; Martyrs-link England & Wales & Wikipedia-link England & Wales.
'Tis also the commemoration of Blessed William Pike, Martyr (died 1591), martyred in the reign of the English queen Elizabeth I, one of the Eighty-five Martyrs of England & Wales: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link; Martyrs-link England & Wales & Wikipedia-link England & Wales.
Commentary: Bl. William was converted to the Catholic Faith by Bl. Thomas.
'Tis also the commemoration of Blessed Matthew Flathers, Priest & Martyr (circa 1580-1607, A.K.A. Mathew Major), martyred in the reign of the Anglo-Scottish king James VI & I, one of the Eighty-five Martyrs of England & Wales: Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Martyrs-link England & Wales & Wikipedia-link England & Wales.
Papal Quote o' the Day
"The world is often closed in its riches or its power, corroded by conflicts, & drunk with violence or sexual release. It is faith that bestows a liberation & puts the individual's faculties in order."Little Flower Quote o' the Day
—Pope St. Paul VI (1897-1978, feast day: 26 September)
"Jesus, hidden in my poor little heart, has once again made me understand how hollow & empty are all passing things."Saint Quote o' the Day
—St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church (1873-1897, feast day: 1 October)
"Let us rest assured that the remembrance of death, like all other blessings, is a gift of God."
—St. John Climacus (579-649, feast day: 30 March)
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