Saints + Scripture

Better Late than Never | Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa!

Saints of the Day
'Tis the festival of Saint Narcissus of Jerusalem, Bishop (99-216), fifteenth (XV) Bishop of Aelia Capitolina (180-216; thirtieth [XXX] in the line of bishops of Jerusalem): Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, Saint-link trēs, & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Aelia Capitolina.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis also the festival of Saint Abraham Kidunaia, Priest & Hermit (circa 296-366; the Great, of Kidunja): Saint-link ūnus, Saint-link duo, & Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Uncle of St. Mary of Edessa [also 29 October].

'Tis also the festival of Saint Mary of Edessa, Hermitess (floruit fourth century): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link.

'Tis also the festival of Saint Colman mac Duagh, Bishop & Abbot (circa 560-632), founding abbot-bishop of the Kilmacduagh Monastery: Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link Kilmacduagh & Wikipedia-link Monastery.

'Tis also the festival of Saint Gaetano Errico, Priest, M.SS.CC. (1791-1860), founder of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus & Mary (1836, M.SS.CC.): Saint-link & Wikipedia-link; Wikipedia-link M.SS.CC.

'Tis also the festival of Blessed Maria Restituta Kafka, Virgin & Martyr, S.F.C.C. (1894-1943, A.K.A. Helena Kafková), martyred in the reign of the Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler: Martyr-link ūna, Martyr-link duæ, & Wikipedia-link.

Commentary: Wayback Machine.

'Tis also the festival of Blessed Chiara Luce Badano (1971-1990): Blessed-link & Wikipedia-link.

Scripture of the Day
Mass Readings—Thurday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
The Letter to the Ephesians, chapter six, verses ten thru twenty;
Psalm One Hundred Forty-four (R/. one[b]), verses one(b), two, & nine & ten;
The Gospel according to Luke, chapter thirteen, verses thirty-one thru thirty-five.

Commentary: Gospel reflection by Bishop Robert Barron (Word on Fire):

Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus compares himself to a mother hen who longs to gather her chicks under her wing. As the theologian N.T. Wright points out, this is much more than a sentimental image. It refers to the gesture of a hen when fire is sweeping through the barn. In order to protect her chicks, she will sacrifice herself, gathering them under her wing and using her own body as a shield.

On the cross, Jesus used, as it were, his own sacrificed body as a shield, taking the full force of the world’s hatred and violence. He entered into close quarters with sin (because that’s where we sinners are found) and allowed the heat and fury of sin to overwhelm him, even as he protected us.

With this metaphor in mind, we can see, with special clarity, why the first Christians associated the crucified Jesus with the suffering servant of Isaiah. By enduring the pain of the cross, Jesus did indeed bear our sins; by his stripes we were indeed healed.

Video reflection by Deacon Clarence McDavid (U.S. Conf. of Catholic Bishops): Daily Reflection.

Video reflection by Becket Ghioto (St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology): Daily Reflection.

Scripture Study—Day 91: Havel Highlands, Day 39
The Book of Ecclesiastes, chapter eleven, verses one thru six.

Commentary: The Value of Diligence (Ecclesiastes, 11:1-6).

Papal Quote o' the Day

"Only Christ's law, only Christ's grace can renew & restore private & public life. He alone can redress the true balance of rights & duties, check unbridled self-interest, control passion, implement & perfect the course of justice with His overflowing charity."
—Pope Ven. Pius XII (1876-1958, r. 1939-1958)

Mother Teresa Quote o' the Day

"One cannot expect to become a saint without paying the price, & the price is much renunciation, much temptation, much struggle & persecution, & all sorts of sacrifices. One cannot love God except at the cost of oneself."
—St. Teresa of Calcutta, M.C. (1910-1997, feast: 5 September)

Saint Quote o' the Day

"At this point I have nothing left, but I still have my heart, & with that I can always love."
—Bl. Chiara Luce Badano (1971-1990, feast: 29 October)