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January 20, 2009 - Tuesday in 2nd Week of Ordinary Time     LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION: "The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath" UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S): Obama Is Subject of Pro-life Ad SAINT OF THE DAY St. Sebastian  GENERAL MARIOLOGY Marian Devotion, the Rosary, and the Scapular Nature and Necessity Necessity of Marian Devotion DIVINE MERCY On Mercy You are Compassion Itself  TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION: Papal Address to Family Meeting

DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION

"The Son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath" Scripture: Mark 2:23-28 23 One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?" 25 And he said to them, "Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, when Abi'athar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?" 27 And he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath; 28 so the Son of man is lord even of the Sabbath."   Meditation: What does the commandment "keep holy the Sabbath" require of us? Or better yet, what is the primary intention behind this command? The religious leaders confronted Jesus on this issue. The "Sabbath rest" was meant to be a time to remember and celebrate God's goodness and the goodness of his work, both in creation and redemption. It was a day set apart for the praise of God, his work of creation, and his saving actions on our behalf. It was intended to bring everyday work to a halt and to provide needed rest and refreshment. Jesus' disciples are scolded by the scribes and Pharisees, not for plucking and eating corn from the fields, but for doing so on the Sabbath. In defending his disciples, Jesus argues from the scriptures that human need has precedence over ritual custom. When David and his men were fleeing for their lives, they sought food from Ahim'elech the priest (1 Samuel 21:1-6). The only bread he had was the holy bread offered in the Temple. None but the priests were allowed to eat it. In their hunger, David and his men ate of this bread. Jesus reminds the Pharisees that the Sabbath was given for our benefit, to refresh and renew us in living for God. It was intended for good and not for evil. Withholding mercy and kindness in response to human need was not part of God’s intention that we rest from unnecessary labor. Do you honor the Lord in the way you treat your neighbor and celebrate the Lord’s Day? "Lord Jesus, may I give you fitting honor in the way I live my life and in the way I treat my neighbor. May I honor the Lord's Day as a day holy to you. And may I  always treat others with the same mercy and kindness which you have shown to me. Free me from a critical and intolerant spirit that I may always seek the good of my neighbor." Psalm 111:1-2,4-5,9-10 1 Prasie the LORD. I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart, in the company of the upright, in the congregation. 2 Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who have pleasure in them. 4 He has caused his wonderful works to be remembered; the LORD is gracious and merciful. 5 He provides food for those who fear him; he is ever mindful of his covenant. 9 He sent redemption to his people; he has commanded his covenant for ever. Holy and terrible is his name! 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who practice it.  His praise endures for ever!   www.dailyscripture.net   RETURN TO TOP

UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Obama Is Subject of Pro-life Ad CatholicVote to Air it During Inauguration   CHICAGO, JAN. 19, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Every life has potential is the message of an ad to be aired repeatedly on Black Entertainment Television in Chicago during Tuesday's coverage of Barack Obama's presidential inauguration. The 30-second spot, produced by CatholicVote.org, begins with ultrasound image of an unborn baby. "This child's future is a broken home," the overlying text states, with music playing in the background. "He will be abandoned by his father. His single mother will struggle to raise him." "Despite the hardships he will endure," the text continues, as the music gets louder and is mixed with sounds of a cheering crowd, "this child ... will become ... the first African American president." Then showing a picture of Barack Obama, the text says: "Life: Imagine the potential." The ad is the first in a series to be released this year as part of a new educational campaign, titled precisely "Life: Imagine the Potential." Brian Burch, executive director of CatholicVote.org, commented on the ad in a press statement: "Our message is simple: Abortion is the enemy of hope. The purpose of our new ad is to spread a message of hope about the potential of every human life, including the life of President-elect Obama." "Each human life has dignity and worth," he added. “Given the political climate, we acknowledge that the fight to protect human life faces an uphill climb," continued Burch. "For this reason, we developed an ad that we hope can transcend the political obstacles ahead, and provoke the consciences of our leaders and fellow Americans." CatholicVote.org is a project of the Fidelis Center for Law and Policy.   RETURN TO TOP

DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

St. Sebastian (257?-288?)   Nothing is historically certain about St. Sebastian except that he was a Roman martyr, was venerated in Milan even in the time of St. Ambrose and was buried on the Appian Way, probably near the present Basilica of St. Sebastian. Devotion to him spread rapidly, and he is mentioned in several martyrologies as early as a.d. 350. The legend of St. Sebastian is important in art, and there is a vast iconography. Scholars now agree that a pious fable has Sebastian entering the Roman army because only there could he assist the martyrs without arousing suspicion. Finally he was found out, hauled before Emperor Diocletian and delivered to Mauritanian archers to be shot to death. His body was pierced with arrows, and he was left for dead. But he was found still alive by those who came to bury him. He recovered, but refused to flee. One day he took up a position near where the emperor was to pass. He accosted the emperor, denouncing him for his cruelty to Christians. This time the sentence of death was carried out. Sebastian was beaten to death with clubs. Comment: The fact that many of the early saints made such a tremendous impression on the Church—awakening widespread devotion and great praise from the greatest writers of the Church—is proof of the heroism of their lives. As has been said, legends may not be literally true. Yet they may express the very substance of the faith and courage evident in the lives of these heroes and heroines of Christ. http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintofDay RETURN TO TOP

GENERAL MARIOLOGY

Marian Devotion, the Rosary, and the Scapular  By Fr. Etienne Richer    The following article is an excerpt from a chapter in the recently published Marian anthology, Mariology: A Guide for Priests, Deacons, Seminarians, and Consecrated Persons, Seat of Wisdom Books, A Division of Queenship, 2008. Fifteen international Mariology experts contributed to the text. The book features a foreword by Archbishop Raymond L. Burke and has 17 chapters divided into four parts: 1. Mary in Scripture and the Early Church; 2. Marian Dogma; 3. Marian Doctrine; and 4. Marian Liturgy and Devotion. The book is now available from Queenship Publications. To obtain a copy, visit queenship.org. Visit books.google.com and search on "Mariology: A Guide" to view the book in its entirety, or simply click here. Asst. Ed. Necessity of Marian Devotion In his celebrated Treatise on True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort makes the following remarks: We must conclude that, being necessary to God by a necessity which is called "hypothetical," (that is, because God so willed it), the Blessed Virgin is all the more necessary for men to attain their final end. Consequently, we must not place devotion to her on the same level as devotion to the other saints as if it were merely something optional (38). Would this be a doctrine incompatible with that of the Second Vatican Council according to which "the Blessed Virgin’s saving influence on men originates not in any inner necessity but from the divine good pleasure. It flows from the superabundance of the merits of Christ" (LG 60)? As he himself had enunciated it briefly (cf. TD 39), the notion to which de Montfort has recourse is that of ex hypothesi. The French Mariologist Guillaume de Menthière provides a clear and well-founded explanation of this distinction: A thing may be said to be necessary either absolutely or hypothetically. Absolute necessity is that whose contrary implies contradiction, such as necessity of a geometric type according to which for example the sum of the three angles of a triangle must always equal 180 degrees. Ex hypothesi necessity on the other hand is necessity of a moral type, whose contrary does not imply a contradiction but unfaithfulness to the hypotheses which one is given. … Just as the Incarnation is not necessary to the redemption absolutely speaking, so the Fiat of Mary is not necessary to the Incarnation. … Nonetheless God in his mercy has willed that his creature participate to the extent possible in the redemption and that is why he deferred to the free assent of the Virgin for the execution of his saving plan for humanity. In this sense we may declare the Fiat of Mary necessary, by a hypothetical necessity, for the redemption. The necessity which we are describing is then very real, but as included in the divine willing of humanity’s collaboration in the work of salvation. It comes under this divine "hypothesis" (39). It is precisely in this sense that some authors like St. Anselm of Canterbury (+1109) and St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (+1716) speak of "hypothetical necessity" (40). This does not have to do, as St. Anselm well explains, with a necessity which increases or diminishes gratuitousness, in which case it would not have a place in the economy of Divine Revelation, but on the contrary of a "necessity," with regard to the end to be accomplished, which integrates and increases the gratuitousness. In his Summa Theologica, Thomas Aquinas does not hesitate to use and even to specify the distinction between absolute necessity of nature and necessity of fittingness, which includes gratuitousness (41). We can then speak legitimately of the necessity (hypothetical, that is to say as a consequence of the divine will) of Mary to God and even still more to men, in the same way that the Doctor Magnificus affirmed the necessity of the Incarnation and of the Cross (42). To speak of the necessity of Marian devotion, like Grignion de Montfort who "highlights the ‘necessity of Mary’ in the great perspective of the necessity of the Incarnation, of the redemption and of grace" (43), has nothing in common then with low-level theological eccentricity, but corresponds very exactly to that which he himself in the line of Anselm qualifies as a "hypothetical necessity," an expression of the loving will of God. Thus, our observation is in profound harmony with the affirmation of the Second Vatican Council: "the Blessed Virgin’s saving influence on men originates not in any inner necessity but from the divine good pleasure" (LG 60). Since it is so necessary, it would be surprising that the law of the Church should be silent on this subject, especially since Leo XIII had written that "Whoever considers the height of dignity to which God has raised the most august Virgin Mary will easily perceive how important it is, both for the public and private good, that devotion to her should be assiduously practiced and daily promoted more and more" (44).    (to be continued)  RETURN TO TOP

DIVINE MERCY

Dairy from St. Faustina On Mercy You are Compassion Itself O my God, even in the punishments You send down upon the earth I see the abyss of Your mercy, for by punishing us here on earth You free us from eternal punishment (Diary, 423). O God, You are compassion itself for the greatest sinners who sincerely repent. The greater the sinner, the greater his right to God's mercy (Diary, 423). I desire to go throughout the whole world and speak to souls about the great mercy of God (Diary, 491). RETURN TO TOP

CATHOLIC  TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Papal Address to Family Meeting "It Is in the Home Where One Learns to Truly Live"   VATICAN CITY, JAN. 19, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the message Benedict XVI gave via video linkup at the conclusion of Sunday's closing Mass of the 6th World Meeting of Families. The world meeting was held last week in Mexico City. * * * Dear brothers and sisters: I greet all of you with affection at the end of this solemn Eucharistic celebration with which the 6th World Meeting of Families is concluding in Mexico City. I give thanks to God for so many families that, without counting the cost, have gathered around the altar of the Lord. I greet in a special way the Cardinal Secretary of State, Tarcisio Bertone, who has presided over this celebration as my legate. I want to express my affection and my gratitude to Cardinal Ennio Antonelii and to the members of the Pontifical Council for the Family, over which he presides, to the Cardinal Archbishop Primate of Mexico, Norberto Rivera Carrera, and the central commission that has been responsible for the organization of this 6th World Meeting. My recognition goes to all those who with their abnegated dedication and surrender have made its fulfillment possible. I also greet the cardinals and bishops present in this celebration, in particular those of the Mexican episcopal conference, and the authorities of this dear nation, who generously have welcomed and made possible this important event. The Mexican people know well that they are very close to the heart of the Pope. I think of them and I present to God the Father their joys and hopes, their projects and concerns. In Mexico, the Gospel has taken deep roots, forging its traditions and culture, and the identity of its noble people. This rich patrimony must be protected so that it continues being a spring of moral and spiritual energies to courageously and creatively face the challenges of today and so that it can be offered as a precious gift to new generations. I have participated with joy and interest in this World Meeting, above all with my prayer, giving specific guidelines and attentively following its preparation and development. Today, through the communications media, I have spiritually made a pilgrimage to this Marian shrine, heart of Mexico and of all of America, so as to entrust all the families of the world to Our Lady of Guadalupe. 2. This World Meeting of Families has aimed to encourage Christian homes so that their members be free persons, rich in human and Gospel values, on the way toward sanctity, which is the best service that Christians can offer today's society. The Christian response to the challenges that must be confronted by families and human life in general, consists in intensifying trust in the Lord and the vigor that springs from one's faith, which is nourished by attentive listening to the Word of God. How beautiful it is to gather as a family to allow God to speak to the hearts of the members through his living and effective Word. In prayer, especially with the praying of the rosary, as was done yesterday, the family contemplates the mysteries of the life of Jesus, interiorizes the values that it meditates and feels called to incarnate them in their lives. 3. The family is an indispensable base for society and for peoples, as well as an irreplaceable good for children, worthy of coming into life as a fruit of love, of the parents' total and generous surrender. As Jesus showed in honoring the Virgin Mary and St. Joseph, the family occupies a primary place in the education of the person. It is a true school of humanity and perennial values. No one has given being to himself. We have received life from others, which is developed and matured with the truths and values that we learn in relation and communion with the rest. In this sense, the family founded on the indissoluble matrimony between a man and a woman expresses this relational, filial and communitarian dimension, and is the realm where man can be born with dignity, grow and develop in an integral way (cf. Homily in the Holy Mass of the 5th World Meeting of Families, Valencia, July 9, 2006). Nevertheless, this education task is made difficult by a deceptive concept of liberty, in which whims and the subjective impulses of the individual are exalted to the point of leaving each one locked within the prison of his own "I." The true liberty of the human being comes from having been created in the image and likeness of God, and therefore should be exercised with responsibility, always opting for the true good so that it becomes love, gift of self. For this, more than theories, the intimacy and love characteristic of the familial community are needed. It is in the home where one learns to truly live, to value life and health, liberty and peace, justice and truth, work, concord and respect. 4. Today more than ever is needed the testimony and public commitment of all the baptized to reaffirm the dignity and the unique and irreplaceable value of the family founded on the marriage of a man and a woman and open to life, as well as the [value] of human life in all its stages. Legislative and administrative measures that support families in their inalienable rights, necessary to carry forward their extraordinary mission, should also be promoted. The testimonies presented in yesterday's celebration show that today, too, the family can show itself to be firm in the love of God and renew humanity in the new millennium. 5. I want to express my closeness and assure my prayers for all families that give a testimony of fidelity in especially difficult circumstances. I encourage numerous families that, living sometimes in the midst of contradictions and incomprehension, give an example of generosity and trust in God, expressing my desire that needed help is not lacking for them. I think also of the families that suffer poverty, illness, marginalization or emigration. And very especially of the Christian families that are persecuted because of their faith. The Pope is very close to all of you and he accompanies you in your efforts of every day. 6. Before concluding this meeting, it pleases me to announce that that 7th World Meeting of Families will take place, God willing, in Italy, in the city of Milan, in 2012, with the theme, "Family, Work and Celebration." I sincerely thank Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, archbishop of Milan, for his hospitality in accepting this important commitment. I entrust all the families of the world to the protection of the Most Holy Virgin, so highly venerated in the noble Mexican land in her image from Guadalupe. To her, who always reminds us that our happiness is in doing the will of Christ (cf. John 2:5), I say now: Most Holy Mother of Guadalupe who has shown your love and tenderness to the peoples of the American continent, shower with joy and hope all the peoples and all the families of the world. To you, who goes before [us] and guides our journey in the faith toward the eternal homeland, we entrust the joys, the projects, the concerns and the desires of every family. Oh Mary, to you we turn, trusting in your motherly tenderness; do not ignore the petitions we direct to you for the families of all the world in this crucial period of history. Instead, gather all of us in your maternal heart and accompany us in our journey to the celestial home. Amen.   RETURN TO TOP

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