The Popish Plot
"Julian of Norwich & Revelations of Divine Love"
'Tis the festival of Saint Aelia Pulcheria, Virgin (circa 398-453, also spelt Pulqueria), Empress of the Eastern Roman Empire, sponsor of the Council of Ephesus (431, the third [III] ecumenical council) & the Council of Chalcedon (451, the fourth [IV] ecumenical council): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Council-link Ephesus & Wikipedia-link Ephesus, Council-link Chalcedon & Wikipedia-link Chalcedon.
Commentary: Wayback Machine.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Finnian of Movilla, Bishop & Abbot (circa 495-589, A.K.A. Finbarr), founding bishop-abbot of Movilla Abbey (540): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Movilla.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Theodard of Maastricht, Bishop & Martyr, O.S.B. (circa 618-670; A.K.A. Diethardt, Dodart), eleventh (XI) Bishop of Maastricht (663-670), abbot of the Abbey of Stavelot-Malmedy (653-663), martyred by thieving Frankish nobles to cover up their crimes: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link; Diocese-link & Wikipedia-link, & Wikipedia-link Stavelot-Malmedy.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Frithestan, Bishop (died circa 933, also spelt Frithustan), twenty-second (XXII) Bishop of Winchester (909-931): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Diocese-link & Wikipedia-link Winchester.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Nicholas of Tolentino, Priest, O.S.A. (circa 1245-1306, the "Patron of Holy Souls"): Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, & Wikipedia-link.
'Tis also the festival of the Two Hundred Five Martyrs of Japan (circa 1598-1632), martyred in the reigns of the Japanese warlords Tokugawa Ieyasu, Tokugawa Hidetada, & Tokugawa Iemitsu: Martyrs-link Nihon & Wikipedia-link Nihon.
'Tis also the festival of Saint Ambrose Barlow, Priest & Martyr, O.S.B. (1585-1641), martyred in the reign of the Anglo-Scottish king Charles I, one of the Forty Martyrs of England & Wales: Martyr-link & Wikipedia-link; Martyrs-link England & Wales & Wikipedia-link England & Wales.
Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Thursday of the Twenty-three Week in Ordinary Time
The First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter eight, verses one(b) thru seven, eleven, twelve, & thirteen;
Psalm One Hundred Thirty-nine (R/. twenty-four[b]), verses one(b), two, & three; thirteen & fourteen(a/b); & twenty-three & twenty-four;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter six, verses twenty-seven thru thirty-eight.
Commentary: Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):
Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus commands us to love our enemies. And therefore our enemies are also our brothers and our sisters. Notice that I am not denying that we have real enemies who are wicked. But it is a Christian conviction that all of that evil is not telling the deepest truth about the enemy.Video reflection by Deacon Clarence McDavid (U. S. C. of Catholic Bishops): Daily Reflection.
The deepest truth is that he or she is a child of God, and thus worthy of our love. None of this implies that wicked people should not be brought to justice. But it does indeed imply that the person so arrested, tried, or imprisoned should remain a beloved brother or sister.
How should this manifest itself? There are heroic examples of enemy love, such as the Amish couple who befriended and then defended in court the young man who had brutally killed their own son; or Cardinal Bernardin, who visited and anointed the man who had accused him falsely of sexual misconduct. But these are precious and rare.
Something that all of us can do is to pray for those who mistreat us, offering them to God, expressing a spiritual solidarity with them.
Video reflection by Doctor John Bergsma (St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology): Daily Reflection.
Papal Quote o' the Day
"Christ is our Savior; He is the head of our immense body that is maturing: believing & redeemed humanity: the Church. It is He Who pardons us & enables us to do things greater than ourselves. He is the defender of the poor & the consoler of the suffering."Saint Quote o' the Day
—Pope St. Paul VI (1897-1978, r. 1963-1978; feast: 29 May)
"Love Him totally, Who gave Himself totally for your love."Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day
—St. Clare of Assisi, O.S.C. (1194-1253, feast: 11 August)
"You are the future of family life. You are the future of the joy of living. You are the future of making your life something beautiful for God… That you love a girl or that you love a boy is beautiful, but don't spoil it, don't destroy it. Ask God to guide you in your love."Archbishop Sheen Quote o' the Day
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)
"There is a two-fold danger. On the one hand, the Christian laity may form a kind of a ghetto; that is to say, they may consider their religious activities to be confined only to the Church & keeping the commandments. Then Christians huddle together in a kind of igloo, completely divorcing faith & action. The other extreme would be to become so worldly, that they can do nothing with it. The result of this separation of religion & the world is that culture has emancipated itself from Christ & become demonic. For the laity to be effective, they have to do three things. First of all they have to be conscious of the fact that they are members of the people of God, the community. Second, they must be theologically literate. St. Peter said they should be able to give reason for the faith that is in them. And then third, they must communicate with the world as Christians."
—Ven. Fulton Sheen (1895-1979)
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