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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240921
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240922
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240915T104327Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240915T104327Z
UID:12532-1726876800-1726963199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Matthew
DESCRIPTION:ST MATTHEW\, \nAPOSTLE AND EVANGELIST \nFrom “The Saints” by John Coulson1 \n◊◊◊ \nFew people love the tax collector… Much more was this so in the Palestine \nof the first century\, when it was in his interests to bully and harry and falsify. \nBut even the mild and honest tax collector was not acceptable to official \nJudaism: he did business with the gentile and handled his money; he was legally \nimpure\, socially outcast. A Jewish Rabbi would be bold indeed to invite him to \njoin his inner circle of disciples: it would be a gesture of defiance to the \nestablished prejudice. And so\, the formula ‘publicans and sinners’ slipped even \ninto the phrase book of the evangelist and\, quaintly enough\, into the Gospel of \nMatthew the publican. This term ‘publican’…does not accurately describe \nMatthew’s profession but flatters it. The Pharisees might despise it\, but the \ntrade was a profitable one and much sought after: whether it be pursued \nhonestly or dishonestly would depend on the character of the officer. \n“And Jesus passed further on\, he saw Levi\, the son of Alpheus\, sitting at \nwork in the customs-house and said to him\, “Follow me”; and he rose and \nfollowed him. That this was a call to the apostolate there is no doubt – its terms \ntoo closely match those of the call of Simon and Andrew to be otherwise. Yet \n‘Levi’ does not appear in any list of the Twelve. Now the vocation of the tax \ncollector is reported in the first Gospel too\, but there he is called ‘Matthew’\, thus \nidentifying him with the Matthew who appears in all the apostolic lists. The \nwidely accepted and most natural explanation is that Matthew and Levi are one \nperson with two Semitic names. It may be that our Lord himself gave him the \nname Matthew (Mattai\, ‘gift of God’\, in Aramaic) as he gave Kepha to Simon.15 \nThis Matthew then got up from his registers… The change destroyed all \nMatthew’s worldly prospects: Simon and Andrew might return to their fish\, but \nMatthew had thrown over a coveted business and could never recover it. He \nleft it gladly…and completely. It was not he but Judas who kept the accounts \nfor the apostolic group… \nWhen the need for a written gospel record began to be felt\, upon which of \nthe Apostles would the choice fall? Upon one who used the pen\, no doubt. Poor \nMatthew was back where he started\, but this time with an eager will and high \npurpose. In Palestine\, sometime between the years 40 and 50\, this ex-civil \nservant produced not the lively and artless Gospel of St. Mark but the orderly\, \nalmost ledger like\, treatise\, which we know as ‘The Gospel according to St. \nMatthew.’ \nAnd so\, Matthew’s old trade entered a new service; the accountant \nbecame an evangelist. It is not surprising that he alone records his Master’s \nwords; “Every scholar whose learning is of the kingdom of heaven…knows how \nto bring both new and old things out of his treasure house. For there is no poor \ntool of ours that God’s service will not perfect and dignify. \nIt is commonly but not unanimously affirmed he died a martyr’s death; \nbut we know for certain that he lived a martyr’s life – and that is enough. And \nfor us he will always be the man who knew what money was and what it was \nnot.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-matthew-3/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240922
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240923
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T095618Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T095618Z
UID:12541-1726963200-1727049599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Skema
DESCRIPTION:Biblical Readings for Office and Mass\n25th Week in Ordinary Time\n\n\nMass Readings: Sunday (B)\, Weekdays (II)\nSeptember 22 – 28\, 2024\n\n\n\nSun\n22\nMon\n23\nTue\n24\nWed\n25\nThu\n26\nFri\n27\nSat\n28\n\n\nOffice\n25th Sunday\nSt Pius of Pietrelcina\nWeekday\nOffice for the Dead\nWeekday\nSt Vincent de Paul\nMemorial of the BVM\n\n\nVigils\nTob 5:9-6:1\nTob 6:2-18\nTob 7:1-17\nTob 8:1-21\nTob 9:1-6\nTob 10:1-13\nTob 11:1-18\n\n\nLauds\nHos 2:18-25\nHos 3:1-5\nHos 4:1-6\nHos 4:7-12\nHos 4:13-19\nHos 5:1-7\nHos 5:8-15\n\n\nMass\n134\n449\n450\n451\n452\n453\n454\n\n\n1st\nWis 2:12\, 17-20\nProv 3:27-34\nProv 21:1-6\, 10-13\nProv 30:5-9\nEccl 1:2-11\nEccl 3:1-11\nEccl 11:9-12:8\n\n\n2nd\nJas 3:16-4:3\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nGospel\nMark 9:30-37\nLuke 8:16-18\nLuke 8:19-21\nLuke 9:1-6\nLuke 9:7-9\nLuke 9:18-22\nLuke 9:43b-45\n\n\nVespers\n2 Pet 2:10b-16\n2 Pet 2:17-22\n2 Pet 3:1-7\n2 Pet 3:8-13\n2 Pet 3:14-18\n1 John 1:1-4\n1 John 1:5-10
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/skema-86/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240922
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240923
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T095747Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T095747Z
UID:12543-1726963200-1727049599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - 25th Sunday
DESCRIPTION:THE MOST ESTEEMED BY CHRIST \nFrom a commentary by Theophylact of Ohrid1 \n◊◊◊ \nAs he was teaching his disciples the Lord said to them: “The Son of man \nwill be delivered into the hands of men\, and they will put him to death\, but \nafter his death\, on the third day\, he will rise again.” \nThe Lord always alternated prophecies of his passion with the \nperformance of miracles\, so that he should not be thought to have suffered \nthrough lack of power. Therefore\, after imparting the grievous news that men \nwould kill him\, he added the joyful tidings that on the third day he would rise \nagain. This was to teach us that joy always follows sorrow\, and that we should \nnot be uselessly distressed by painful events\, but should rather have a hope that \nbetter times will come. \nHe came to Capernaum\, and after entering the house he questioned the \ndisciples: “What were you arguing about on the way?” Now the disciples still \nsaw things from a very human point of view\, and they had been quarrelling \namongst themselves about which of them was the greatest and the most \nesteemed by Christ. Yet the Lord did not restrain their desire for preeminent \nhonor\, indeed he wishes us to aspire to the most exalted rank. He does not \nhowever wish us to seize the first place\, but rather to win the highest honor by \nhumility. \nHe stood a child among them because he wants us to become childlike. A \nchild has no desire for honor; it is not jealous\, and does not remember injuries. \nAnd he said: “If you become like that\, you will receive great reward\, and if\, \nmoreover\, for my sake you honor others who are like that\, you will receive the3 \nkingdom of heaven\, for you will be receiving me\, and in receiving me you will \nreceive the one who sent me. \nYou see then what great things humility\, together with simplicity and \nguilelessness\, can accomplish. It causes both the Son and the Father to dwell in \nus\, and with them of course comes the Holy Spirit.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-25th-sunday/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240923
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240924
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T095923Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T095923Z
UID:12545-1727049600-1727135999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Pius of Pietrelcina
DESCRIPTION:ST PIO OF PIETRELCINA \nFrom Butler’s Lives of the Saints1 \n◊◊◊ \nThe most famous stigmatist since St Francis of Assisi was born into a \nfamily of agricultural laborers in Pietrelcina\, northeast of Naples\, on May 25\, \n1887. In 1903 he received the capuchin habit\, taking the name of Fra. Pio. Seven \nyears later he was ordained to the priesthood. Not long after this he began to \nexperience pains in his hands and feet\, and on September 11\, 1911 he confessed \nto his spiritual director that he had had invisible stigmata for over a year. He \nalso suffered the pains of Christ’s crown of thorns and scourging. \nOn august 5\, 1918 he underwent the further mystical experience of \n“transverberation” (piercing with the lance)\, which left him with a wound in his \nside that bled continually. A month later the stigmata in his hands and feet \nbecame visible and remained so until the final day of his life. The Capuchins \nmade no attempt to conceal Padre Pio’s condition\, which soon became known \nall over Italy and was the main cause of both his celebrity and the controversy \nthat surrounded him. As people started flocking to his convent in their \nthousands\, the Vatican\, cautious as ever when faced with “private” favors and \nrevelations\, had him examined by a succession of doctors. The physical \nmanifestations were undeniable. But were they from God\, the psychosomatic \neffect of a disturbed personality\, or even a fraudulent attempt on his part of that \nof the convent to achieve notoriety? \nHuge crowds attended his Masses\, during which he went into ecstatic \nstates that could last for two hours or more. In July 1923 he received an order \nto say Mass in private\, but so real was the threat of a violent popular reaction \nthat it was rescinded the following day. Padre Pio himself made no comment on5 \nhis condition other than that he was “a mystery to himself” but his gifts should \nproduce benefits for others. \nHis community was able to ensure that they were so used when money \nofferings started coming in from his penitents and admirers. In January 1925\, \nhe opened a twenty-bed hospital that was named after St. Francis and remained \nin operation for thirteen years… \nIn 1940\, with the particular support of Maria Pyle\, a wealthy American \nwoman to whose mother he had ministered as she was dying in 1929\, Padre Pio \nwas in a position to undertake a more ambitious hospital project. Medical and \nadministrative committees were set up\, but the Second World War delayed \nfurther implementation of the project until 1946\, when a limited company was \nformed to carry the work forward… \nIn 1959 Padre Pio’s own health deteriorated. Then in August he \nrecovered\, apparently miraculously\, when a statue of Our Lady of Fatima was \nbrought into the hospital for two days. He died on September 23\, 1968\, and \ndoctors who examined his body found his hands and feet unmarked and “fresh \nas those of a child”. He was beatified and later canonized by Pope John Paul II. \nIn his address the Pope spoke not so much of Padre Pio’s extraordinary \nexperiences but of the long hours the friar would spend in the confessional and \nof his extraordinary charity\, which\, he said\, “was poured like balm on the \nsufferings of his brothers and sisters.”
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-pius-of-pietrelcina-2/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240924
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240925
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T100030Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T100030Z
UID:12547-1727136000-1727222399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading
DESCRIPTION:BE READY TO MEET THE LORD \nFrom a sermon by Blessed Guerric of Igny1 \n◊◊◊ \nBy comparison with the evil of damnation\, it is a good thing to be saved \nby fire; without any doubt it is much better to be made perfect by the mere \ncleansing of fear; and best of all not to be even disturbed by fear. \nFor that reason\, be ready\, O true Israel\, to meet the Lord\, so that you may \nnot only open to him when he comes and knocks\, but may run to meet him\, \neager and joyful\, while he is still far off\, and\, confident about the day of \njudgment\, pray earnestly that his kingdom may come. If you want to be found \nready then\, take the advice of Wisdom and prepare justice for yourself before \nthe judgment. May you be prepared to do every good work and no less prepared \nto suffer every evil so that your lips may sing without any reproach from your \nheart: “My heart is ready\, Lord\, my heart is ready\, ready with your help to do \ngood\, ready to suffer ill\, and so ready for both that I will sing and give praise in \nmy glory that is\, I will rejoice and glory whichever comes.” \nAnd at once the just man rouses himself in this matter\, saying: “Arise \npsaltery and harp\,” that is\, my heart and my body\, to rejoice in the living God. \nThe heart is meant on account of its spiritual activity\, the body because of its \npassions. For the heart relishing the things that are above is a psaltery giving \nforth heavenly music; the body suffering things of earth is a lyre producing \nworldly music. So it is that elsewhere David\, offering his devoted service to God\, \nsays: “I am ready to keep your commandments\, and so ready that I am not \ntroubled when temptation breaks in on me and persecution rages. Let my rival \npursue me\, my servant curse me\, my own son seek my life\, even so I am not \ntroubled about not keeping the commandments of evangelical perfection. I will \nrender good for evil to those who return evil for good; will be solicitous for the7 \nsafety of those who persecute me\, mourning their death; will bear with the \nreproaches of my servant\, not permitting my honor to be vindicated by a \nfriend.”… And because he was so prepared he went confidently to meet his Lord. \n“Without iniquity\,” he says\, “have I run\, and directed whatever was perverse in \nme so far as I was able.” \nTherefore\, do rise up to meet me coming to meet you\, for I cannot reach \nyour heights unless\, stooping low to the work of your hands\, you stretch out \nyour right hand. Rise up to meet me and see if there be in me the way of iniquity. \nAnd if you do find it there unknown to me\, remove it from me\, and\, having \ncompassion on me with regard to your law\, lead me in the eternal way\, which is \nChrist. He is the way by which we journey\, the eternity at the journey’s end; he \nis the spotless way\, the blessed dwelling place.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-220/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240925
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240926
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T100148Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T100148Z
UID:12549-1727222400-1727308799@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Office of the Dead
DESCRIPTION:A THEOLOGY OF DEATH \nBy Karl Rahner1 \n◊◊◊ \nThe ultimate act of freedom\, in which we decide our own fate totally and \nirrevocably\, is the act in which we either willingly accept or definitively rebel \nagainst our own utter impotence\, in which we are utterly subject to the control \nof a mystery which cannot be expressed – that mystery which we call God. In \ndeath a human being is totally withdrawn from self. Every power\, down to the \nlast vestige of a possibility\, of autonomously controlling its own destiny is taken \naway. \nThus the exercise of freedom taken as a whole is summed up at this point \non one single decision: whether we yield everything up or whether everything is \ntaken from us by force\, whether we respond to this radical deprivation of all \npower by uttering our assent in faith and hope to the nameless mystery which \nwe call God\, or whether even at this point we seek to cling on to our own \nautonomy\, protest against this fall into helplessness\, and\, because of our \ndisbelief\, suppose that we are falling into the abyss of nothingness when in \nreality we are falling into the unfathomable depths of God. \nOn the basis of this it is possible for us to realize that death can be either \nan act of faith or a mortal sin. In order rightly to understand this we must \nconsider (and perhaps it would have been clearer to make this point right from \nthe first) that the actual act of dying does not necessarily occur at that point in \ntime in the physical order at which doctors suppose it to take place\, and at which \nit is considered to take place in the popular estimation when we speak of the \nfinal departure and of death as coming at the end of life. In reality we are dying \nall our lives through right up to this\, the final point in the process of dying…9 \nNow this death in life or living death\, as it may be called\, can become one \nof two things: it can be made into an enduring act of faith in the fact that our \nlives and destinies are being directed and controlled by another and that this \ndirection is right; the willing acceptance of our destiny\, the ultimate act of self- \ncommitment to that destiny\, a renunciation which we make in anticipation of \nour final end because in the end we must renounce all things; also because we \nbelieve that it is only by this poverty entailed in freely accepting our own destiny \nthat we can free ourselves for the hand of God in God’s unfathomable power \nand grace to dispose of us as God wills. \nAlternatively\, this death in the midst of life can become an act of \ndesperately clinging on by main force to that which is destined to fall away from \nus\, a protest\, whether silent or expressed\, against this death in life\, the despair \nof one who is avid for life and who imagines that by sinning happiness is \nobtained by force. The death that is accomplished in life\, therefore\, must be \nreally the act of that loving and therefore trustful faith which gives us courage \nto allow ourselves to be taken up by another. Otherwise\, it will become the \nmortal sin which consists in the pride of seeking one’s own absolute autonomy\, \nanxiety (Angst) and despair all in one.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-office-of-the-dead-3/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240926
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240927
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T100248Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T100248Z
UID:12551-1727308800-1727395199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading
DESCRIPTION:THE ESCHATOLOGICAL CHARACTER \nOF THE PILGRIM CHURCH \nFrom the encyclical Lumen Gentium1 \n◊◊◊ \nThe Church\, to which we are called in Christ Jesus\, and in which by the \ngrace of God we acquire holiness\, will receive its perfection only in the glory of \nheaven\, when the time comes for the renewal of all things\, and the whole \nuniverse\, as well as the human race\, is completely united in Christ. For the \nuniverse has an intimate connection with us\, and through us it reaches its \ndestined end. \nLifted up from the earth\, Christ has drawn all to himself; rising from the \ndead\, he has sent his life-giving Spirit upon his disciples; through the Spirit he \nhas established his Body\, which is the Church\, as the universal sacrament of \nsalvation. Sitting at the right hand of the Father\, he is unceasingly at work in \nthe world to bring men and women to the Church\, to join them more closely to \nhimself through her\, and to give them a share in his glorious life by feeding them \non his own Body and Blood. \nThe promised restoration to which we look forward has already had its \nbeginning in Christ. It receives impetus from the sending of the Holy Spirit and \nthrough him continues in the Church\, where we also receive instruction\, by \nfaith\, in the significance of our earthly life. Meanwhile\, in expectation of a good \nfuture\, we are bringing to completion the work in the world entrusted to us by \nthe Father\, and are working out our salvation. \nThe end of the ages has already reached us\, and the world is irrevocably \nset on the renewal which is anticipated in a real way in this life. Already the \nChurch is marked on earth by a genuine\, if imperfect\, holiness. The Church is11 \non pilgrimage until the coming of the new heavens and the new earth in which \nrighteousness dwells. In her sacraments and organization\, which belong to this \nlife\, she carries the mark of this world which will pass\, and she herself takes her \nplace among the creatures who groan in travail as they wait for the revealing of \nthe children of God.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-221/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240927
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240928
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T100350Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T100350Z
UID:12553-1727395200-1727481599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Vincent de Paul
DESCRIPTION:GOD LOVES THE POOR \nFrom the writing of St Vincent de Paul1 \n◊◊◊ \nEven though the poor are often rough and unrefined\, we must not judge \nthem from external appearances nor from the mental gifts they seem to have \nreceived. On the contrary\, if you consider the poor in the light of faith\, then you \nwill observe that they are taking the place of the Son of God who chose to be \npoor. Although in his passion he almost lost the appearance of a man and was \nconsidered a fool by the Gentiles and a stumbling block by the Jews\, he showed \nthat his mission was to preach to the poor… We also ought to have this same \nspirit and imitate Christ’s actions\, that is\, we must take care of the poor\, console \nthem\, help them\, support their cause. \nSince Christ willed to be born poor\, he chose for himself disciples who \nwere poor. He made himself the servant of the poor and shared their poverty. \nHe went so far as to say that he would consider every deed which either helps \nor harms the poor as done for or against himself. Since God surely loves the \npoor\, he also loves those who love the poor. For when one person holds another \ndear\, he also includes in his affection anyone who loves or serves the one he \nloves. That is why we hope that God will love us for the sake of the poor. So\, \nwhen we visit the poor and needy\, we try to be understanding where they are \nconcerned. We sympathize with them so fully that we can echo Paul’s words: I \nhave become all things to all people. Therefore\, we must try to be stirred by \nour neighbor’s worries and distress. We must beg God to pour into our hearts \nsentiments of pity and compassion and to fill them again and again with these \ndispositions.13 \nIt is our duty to prefer the service of the poor to everything else and to \noffer such service as quickly as possible. If a needy person requires medicine or \nother help during prayer time\, do whatever has to be done with peace of mind. \nOffer the deed to God as your prayer. Do not become upset or feel guilty because \nyou interrupted your prayer to serve the poor. God is not neglected if you leave \nhim for such service. One of God’s works is merely interrupted so that another \ncan be carried out. So\, when you leave prayer to serve some poor person\, \nremember that this service is performed for God. Charity is certainly greater \nthan any rule. Moreover\, all rules must lead to charity. Since she is a noble \nmistress\, we must do whatever she commands. With renewed devotion\, then\, \nwe must serve the poor\, especially beggars and outcasts. They have been given \nto us as our masters and patrons.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-vincent-de-paul-3/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20240928
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20240929
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240922T100449Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240922T100449Z
UID:12555-1727481600-1727567999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading  - Memorial of BVM
DESCRIPTION:MARY AND THE MYSTERY OF \nCHRISTIAN FREEDOM \nFrom “The Handmaid of the Lord” by Adrienne von Speyr1 \n◊◊◊ \nFrom the moment Mary said Yes and gave her consent\, her whole life has \nthe conscious and explicit form of assent\, upon which everything depends. This \nperfect assent is the giving of human freedom to God\, final and so complete that \nby virtue of the humble and confident gift of our freedom and our life\, God owns \neverything from then on and can therefore “whether gradually or all at once” \nuse\, transform or reform all that we have deposited with him. The life of faith\, \nlove and hope\, the Christian life\, is turned towards this form\, so that everything \nwe have may be deposited without hesitation in the hands of Providence… \nMary’s assent was assent of that kind from the beginning. \nMary’s freedom\, like all forms of freedom\, is indivisible\, as may be seen \nfrom her word of assent. She bound herself to God by a single\, completely free \nact leading into perfect freedom. With that act Mary enters the Christian life for \nthe first time\, and in its most perfect form. And since she gave her assent to all \nthat was to come\, she gave her assent to Christianity and all it concealed\, all that \nwas new\, unexpected and beyond expectation. In doing so she gave Christian \nassent its form\, its perfect and essential form: complete self-surrender. \nIn a certain sense one might say that Mary’s assent is a vow of obedience\, \nof chastity and of poverty. Its single renunciation contains a threefold \nrenunciation. For by her one word of assent the Mother of God divested herself \nof everything for God’s sake and for humanity’s sake. Her assent and her \nobedience coincide; choosing assent she chose obedience as her form of life. \nAnd by the same token renounced all claim to her body. Like everything else she \ngave it to God\, and could no longer dispose of it herself or give it to man. She15 \ncould not have served God completely with her body had she not placed \neverything unreservedly at her service. Her task demanded everything she \npossessed\, as the completeness of her assent required it. \nAs little as it is possible to do penance inwardly while living a life of ease\, \nso it is impossible to give up everything inwardly without giving up the outward \nas well. There is a unity in the offer on God’s side and a unity in the answer on \nthe human side\, and that unity constitutes assent. \nAssent is essentially grace: a grace that\, like all grace\, comes from God\, \nworking itself out in human nature and its mission\, with the possibility of \nreturning to God as our answer\, enveloped in the all-embracing mission of the \nSon who received the power to come on earth as a human being\, through the \nassent of a human being. All Christian assent participates in the same essence\, \nand Mary’s assent is the pattern and definition\, indeed the font and origin of \nevery subsequent Christian assent\, because the mystical marriage\, the eternal \nbond between our human assent and God’s assent was made manifest\, for the \nfirst time\, through her. The fruit of that union is the Savior of the world. Though \nthe Mother of God did not say Yes without the Son’s grace\, the Son did not \nbecome man without his Mother’s assent.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-memorial-of-bvm-11/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T234419Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240928T234419Z
UID:12561-1727568000-1727654399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Skema
DESCRIPTION:Biblical Readings for Office and Mass\n26th Week in Ordinary Time\n\n\nMass Readings: Sunday (B)\, Weekdays (II)\nSeptember 29 – October 5\, 2024\n\n\n\nSun\n29\nMon\n30\nTue\n1\nWed\n2\nThu\n3\nFri\n4\nSat\n5\n\n\nOffice\n26th Sunday\nSt Jerome\nSt Therese of the Child Jesus\nHoly Guardian Angels\nLouisville Cathedral\nSt Francis\nMemorial of the BVM\n\n\nVigils\nTob 12:1-22\nTob 13:1-18\nTob 14:1-7\nTob 14:8-15\n2 Chron 7:1-16\nWis 1:1-15\nWis 1:16-2:11\n\n\nLauds\nHos 6:1-6\nHos 6:7-7:2\nHos 7:3-10\nHos 7:11-16\nEzek 43:1-7a\nHos 8:1-7\nHos 8:8-14\n\n\nMass\n137\n455\n456\n457\n701.1\, 706.2\n459\n460\n\n\n1st\nNum 11:25-29\nJob 1:6-22\nJob 3:1-3\, 11-17\, 20-23\nJob 9:1-12\, 14-16\n1 Kings 8:22-23\, 27-30\nJob 38:1\, 12-21; 40:3-5\nJob 42:1-3\, 5-6\, 12-17\n\n\n2nd\nJas 5:1-6\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nGospel\nMark 9:38-43\, 45\, 47-48\nLuke 9:46-50\nLuke 9:51-56\nLuke 9:57-62\nLuke 19:1-10\nLuke 10:13-16\nLuke 10:17-24\n\n\nVespers\n1 John 2:1-6\n1 John 2:7-11\n1 John 2:12-17\n1 John 2:18-23\nActs 7:44-50\n1 John 2:24-27\n1 John 2:28-3:3
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/skema-87/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
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UID:12563-1727568000-1727654399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - 26th Sunday
DESCRIPTION:THE WORD OF GOD IS LIKE \nA TWO-EDGED SWORD \nFrom a commentary by Symeon the New Theologian1 \n◊◊◊ \nDo you tremble when you hear God saying to you day after day \nthroughout the whole of divine Scripture: “Let no evil word come from your \nmouth. Indeed\, I tell you that you will have to answer for a single careless \nword\, and you will receive a reward for a cup of water”? \nDo not deceive yourselves. God loves us\, and he is merciful and \ncompassionate. I myself testify and acknowledge that it is his compassion that \nmakes me confident of being saved. Nevertheless\, you must understand that \nthis will be of no avail to those who refuse to repent and to keep God’s \ncommandments in every detail and with great fear. On the contrary\, God will \npunish them more severely than people who are unbelievers and unbaptized. \nDo not deceive yourselves\, let there be no sin that seems small in your \neyes\, and that you treat lightly\, as though it did no great harm to your souls. \nRight-minded servants make no distinction between a small sin and a great one; \nif they offend by so much as a glance\, a thought\, or a word\, they feel as if they \nhave fallen away from the love of God\, and I believe this is true. In fact\, whoever \nhas the slightest thought contrary to the divine will\, and does not immediately \nrepent and repel the assault of such a thought\, but welcomes it and consents to \nit – that person is counted guilty of sin\, and this is so even if he is unaware that \nhis thought is sinful. \nConsequently\, we need to be extremely vigilant and zealous\, and to give \nmuch time to searching the divine Scriptures. The Savior’s command\, “Search \nthe Scriptures” shows how profitable they are for us. Search them\, and hold fast \nto what they say with great exactitude and faith. Then\, when the divine \nScriptures have given you an accurate knowledge of God’s will\, you will be able \nto distinguish without error between good and evil\, and will not listen to every \nspirit\, or be carried away by harmful thoughts. \nYou may be certain that nothing is so conducive to our salvation as \nfollowing the divine commandments of the Savior. Nevertheless\, we shall have \nto shed many tears\, and shall need great fear\, great patience\, and constant \nprayer before the import of even a word of the Master can be revealed to us. \nOnly then shall we perceive the great mystery hidden in short sayings\, and be \nready to die for the smallest detail of the commandments of God. For the word \nof God is like a two-edged sword\, cutting off and separating the soul from all \nbodily desire and sensation. More than that\, it is like a blazing fire\, because it \nstirs up zeal in our souls\, and makes us disregard all the sorrows of life\, consider \nevery trial we encounter a joy\, and desire and embrace death\, so fearful to \nothers\, as life and the means of attaining life.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-26th-sunday/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T234858Z
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UID:12565-1727654400-1727740799@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Jerome
DESCRIPTION:ON THE LOVE OF SCRIPTURE \nA letter from St Jerome to Paulinus1 \n◊◊◊ \nYou see how\, carried away by my love of the scriptures\, I have exceeded \nthe limits of a letter yet have not fully accomplished my object. We have heard \nonly what it is that we ought to know and to desire\, so that we too may be able \nto say with the psalmist: “My soul breaks out with the fervent desire it always \nhas had for your judgments”. But the saying of Socrates about himself— “I only \nknow this: that I know nothing”—is fulfilled in our case also. \nThe New Testament I will briefly deal with. Matthew\, Mark\, Luke and \nJohn are the Lord’s team of four\, the true cherubim or store of knowledge. [Like \nthe description in the prophet Ezekiel\,] with them the whole body is full of eyes\, \nthey glitter as sparks\, they run and return like lightning\, their feet are straight \nfeet\, and lifted up\, their backs also are winged\, ready to fly in all directions. They \nhold together each by each and are interwoven one with another: like wheels \nwithin wheels\, they roll along and go wherever the breath of the Holy Spirit \nwafts them. The apostle Paul writes to seven churches… He instructs Timothy \nand Titus; he interceded with Philemon for his runaway slave. Of him I think it \nbetter to say nothing than to write inadequately. \nThe Acts of the Apostles seem to relate a mere unvarnished narrative\, \ndescriptive of the infancy of the newly born church; but when once we realize \nthat their author is Luke the physician whose praise is in the gospel\, we shall \nsee that all his works are medicine for the sick soul. The apostles James\, Peter\, \nJohn and Jude have published seven epistles at once spiritual and to the point\, \nshort and long\, short that is in words but lengthy in substance so that there are \nfew indeed who do not find themselves in the dark when they read them. The5 \napocalypse of John has as many mysteries as words. In saying this I have said \nless than the book deserves. All praise of it is inadequate; manifold meanings \nlie hid in its every word. \nI beg of you\, my dear brother\, to live among these books\, to meditate upon \nthem\, to know nothing else\, to seek nothing else. Does not such a life seem to \nyou a foretaste of heaven here on earth? Let not the simplicity of the scripture \nor the poorness of its vocabulary offend you: for these are due either to the faults \nof translators or else to deliberate purpose: for in this way it is better fitted for \nthe instruction of an unlettered congregation as the educated person can take \none meaning and the uneducated another from one and the same sentence. I \nam not so dull or so forward as to profess that I myself know it\, or that I can \npluck upon the earth the fruit which has its root in heaven\, but I confess that I \nshould like to do so. I put myself before the man who sits idle and\, while I lay \nno claim to be a master\, I readily pledge myself to be a fellow-student… Let us \nlearn upon earth that knowledge which will continue with us in heaven.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-jerome-3/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T235021Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240928T235021Z
UID:12567-1727740800-1727827199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Therese of the Child Jesus
DESCRIPTION:THE MISSION OF ST THÉRÈSE \nBy Hans Urs von Balthasar1 \n◊◊◊ \nThere can be no doubt that Thérèse of Lisieux was directly entrusted by \nGod with a mission to the Church. Thérèse’s mission\, at the very first glance\, \ndisplays the marks of a clearly defined\, and quite exceptional character. This is \nmuch less due to the personal drama of the little saint than to the sacred form \ninto which the trickling grains of petty anecdotes are compressed\, into a hard\, \nunbreakable block\, by a firm invisible hand. It is contrary to all expectation that \nthe simple\, modest story of this little girl should eventually culminate\, as it \nirrefutably does\, in the enunciation of theological truths. \nOriginally\, she herself never dreamt that she might be chosen to bear \nsome fundamental message to the Church. She only became aware of it \ngradually; in fact\, it did not occur to her until her task was almost completed\, \nafter she had already lived out her teaching and was writing the last chapters of \nher book. Suddenly\, as she saw it all laid out before her\, she recognized its \nstrangeness\, that in her obedience she had unwillingly conceived something \nbeyond her own personality. And now that she saw it\, she also understood it\, \nand seized it with a kind of violence… \nAt that moment she realized she was to be set on a pedestal\, and that every \nbit of her life\, even its smallest details\, would be used as a pattern for many of \nthe “little ones”. She regards the publication of her manuscript as “an important \nwork”; she knows “that all the world will love me”\, and that her writings “will \ndo a great deal of good”. During her last months\, as if making her last will and \ntestament\, she repeats constantly: “One must tell souls.” Exactly the same \nexpressions recur in reference to the mission she is soon to begin in heaven: “I \nfeel that my mission will soon begin to teach souls to love God as I love Him\, to \ngive them my little way…” Similarly\, she recognizes the function within the \nChurch of her mission. She not only foresees the proclamation of her own \nsanctity but she also\, as it were\, foresaw the canonization of her doctrine. \nSo\, her life only contains exemplary value for the Church insofar as the \nHoly Spirit has possessed her and used her in order to demonstrate something \nfor the sake of the Church\, opening up new vistas onto the Gospels. That\, and \nthat alone\, should be the motive for the Church’s interest in Thérèse. That\, and \nthat alone\, should engage the attention of those who feel themselves put off my \nmany features of her cult\, or even of her character\, or who experience \nindefinable objections to them. In fact\, there are few other cases in which it is \nso prudent to distinguish between the mission of a saint and its essentials. \nIn the case of Thérèse of Lisieux the dramatic tension between her \nmission and her person needs specially to be borne in mind\, and to be \nappreciated primarily in theological terms; the essence of sanctity has to be \ngrasped as truly evangelical\, as belonging to the Church\, as a mission and not \nsimply as an individual ascetical\, mystical manifestation. Moreover\, it is not \njust because of contemporary “needs” but because of the depth of revealed truth \nthat portraits of the saints must in future be remodeled\, so that the saints can \nagain live amongst us\, and in us\, as the best protectors and inspirers of the \ncommunity of the saints\, which is the Church.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-therese-of-the-child-jesus/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T235149Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240928T235149Z
UID:12569-1727827200-1727913599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Holy Guardian Angels
DESCRIPTION:HE HAS GIVEN HIS ANGELS \nCHARGE OVER YOU \nFrom a sermon by St Bernard of Clairvaux1 \n◊◊◊ \nO Lord\, what is man that you have made yourself known to him\, or why \ndo you incline your heart to him? And you do incline your heart to him; you \nshow him your care and concern. Finally\, you send your only son and the grace \nof your spirit\, and promise him a vision of your countenance. And so\, that \nnothing in heaven should be wanting in your concern for us\, you send those \nblessed spirits to serve us\, assigning them as our guardians and teachers. \n“He has given his angels charge over you to guard you in all your ways.” \nThese words should fill you with respect\, inspire devotion and instill \nconfidence; respect for the presence of angels\, devotion because of their loving \nservice\, and confidence because of their protection. And so\, the angels are here; \nthey are at your side\, they are with you\, present on your behalf. They are here \nto protect you and to serve you. But even if it is God who has given them this \ncharge\, we must nevertheless be grateful to them for the great love with which \nthey obey and come to help us in our great need. \nSo let us be devoted and grateful to such great protectors; let us return \ntheir love and honor them as much as we can and should. Yet all our love and \nhonor must go to him\, for it is from him that they receive all that makes them \nworthy of our love and respect. \nWe should then\, my brothers\, show our affection for the angels\, for one \nday they will be our coheirs just as here below they are our guardians and \ntrustees appointed and set over us by the Father. We are God’s children \nalthough it does not seem so\, because we are still but small children under \nguardians and trustees\, and for the present little better than slaves. \nEven though we are children and have a long\, a very long and dangerous \nway to go\, with such protectors what have we to fear? They who keep us in all \nour ways cannot be overpowered or led astray\, much less lead us astray. They \nare loyal\, prudent\, powerful. Why then are we afraid? We have only to follow \nthem\, stay close to them\, and we shall dwell under the protection of God’s \nheaven.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-holy-guardian-angels/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T235302Z
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UID:12571-1727913600-1727999999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Louisville Cathedral
DESCRIPTION:ON THE DEDICATION OF A CHURCH \nBy St Bernard of Clairvaux1 \n◊◊◊ \nToday we celebrate another glorious feast: it is the feast of the Lord’s \nhouse\, of God’s temple\, of the city of the eternal King\, of Christ’s bride. Let us \nask ourselves what this house of God\, this temple\, this city\, and this bride can \nbe. With awe and reverence I say: It is we ourselves. I say it is we ourselves\, but \nin the heart of God; it is we ourselves\, but by his grace and not by any merits of \nour own. We humans must beware of appropri-ating what belongs to God\, of \ntaking the glory to ourselves; otherwise\, if we exalt ourselves\, he will humble us \nand bring us down to our proper level. On the other hand\, a humble \nacknowledgment of our maladies will arouse his compassion. Indeed\, this is \nenough to make God feed us in our hunger like a well-to-do father. So\, under \nhis protection we shall have bread in abundance and thus become his house in \nwhich life-giving food is never lacking. \nBear in mind also that he describes his house as a house of prayer\, and \nthat holiness befits this house; then the purity of self-restraint will accompany \nthe tears of repentance\, and what is already God’s house will become his temple \nas well. Be holy\, says the Lord\, because I am holy. And the Apostle says: Do you \nnot realize that your bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and the Holy \nSpirit dwells in you? \nBut is even holiness enough? According to the Apostle\, peace too is \nnecessary\, for he says: Strive to be at peace with everyone\, and to achieve the \nholiness without which no one can see God. It is peace that makes brothers \ndwell together in unity and builds for our king\, the true king of peace\, a new city \nalso called Jerusalem\, which means “vision of peace.” \nBut how can so great a king become a bridegroom\, and a city a bride? This \nis possible to love alone\, which is as strong as death\, and can do anything. Can \nit not easily lift her up\, when it has already brought him down? \nAnd so\, if the abundance of our food shows us to be the house of a great \nFather\, if holiness shows us to be God’s temple\, if the sharing of a common life \nshows us to be the city of the great king\, and if love shows us to be the bride of \nthe immortal bridegroom\, then we can surely say without hesitation that today’s \nfeast is our feast. Nor should you be surprised that such a feast is celebrated \nhere on earth; it is\, after all\, being celebrated in heaven too! For if as Truth says\, \nso it must be true\, there is joy in heaven and even among God’s angels over a \nsingle sinner repenting\, then the joy there today must be many times greater at \nso many sinners repenting. Let us then share the rejoicing of the angels\, let us \nshare the joy of God\, and let us keep today’s feast with thanksgiving\, for the fact \nthat it is our own should make us all the more willing to celebrate it.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-louisville-cathedral-2/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241005
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T235412Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240928T235412Z
UID:12573-1728000000-1728086399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St Francis
DESCRIPTION:THE HUMILITY OF ST FRANCIS \nFrom “The Life of St Francis” by St Bonaventure1 \n◊◊◊ \nIn order to render himself contemptible to others\, he did not spare \nhimself the embarrassment of bringing up his own faults when he preached \nbefore all the people. Once it happened that when he was weighed down with \nsickness\, he relaxed a little the rigor of his abstinence in order to recover his \nhealth. When his strength of body returned\, he was aroused to insult his own \nbody out of true self-contempt: “It is not right\,” he said\, “that the people should \nbelieve I am abstaining while\, in fact\, I eat meat on the sly.” \nInflamed with the spirit of true humility\, he called the people together in \nthe square of the town of Assisi and solemnly entered the principal church with \nmany of the friars whom he had brought with him. With a rope tied around his \nneck and stripped to his underwear\, he had himself dragged before the eyes of \nall to the stone where criminals received their punishment. He climbed up upon \nthe stone and preached with much vigor and spirit although he was suffering \nfrom a fever and the weather was bitter cold. He asserted to all his hearers that \nhe should not be honored as a spiritual man but rather he should be despised \nby all as a carnal man and a glutton. \nTherefore\, those who had gathered there were amazed at so great a \nspectacle. They were well aware of his austerity\, and so their hearts were struck \nwith compunction; but they professed that his humility was easier to admire \nthan to imitate. Although this incident seemed to be more a portent like that of \nthe Prophet [Isaiah] than an example\, nevertheless it was a lesson in true \nhumility instructing the follower of Christ that he should despise the fame of \ntransitory praise\, suppress the arrogance of bloated bragging and reject the lies \nof deceptive pretense. \nHe often did many things like this so that outwardly he might become like \na discarded utensil while inwardly possessing the spirit of holiness. He strove \nto hide the gifts of his Lord in the secret recesses of his heart\, not wanting them \nto be exposed to praise\, which could be an occasion of a fall. For often when he \nwas praised by the crowds\, he would answer like this: “I could still have sons \nand daughters; don’t praise me as if I were secure! No one should be praised \nwhose end is still uncertain.” This is what he would say to those who praised \nhim\, and to himself he would say: “If the Most High had given so much to a \nbrigand\, he would be more grateful than you\, Francis.” He often used to tell the \nfriars: “No one should flatter himself for doing anything a sinner can also do. A \nsinner\,” he said\, “can fast\, pray\, weep and mortify his flesh. This one thing he \ncannot do: be faithful to his Lord. Therefore\, we should glory in this: if we give \nback to the Lord the glory that is his\, if we serve him faithfully and ascribe to \nhim whatever he gives to us.”
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-francis-2/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241006
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20240928T235515Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240928T235515Z
UID:12575-1728086400-1728172799@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Memorial of BVM
DESCRIPTION:MARY’S POETIC SENSIBILITY \nBy Émile Mersch1 \n◊◊◊ \nThe Magnificat is Mary’s own song\, and when she composed it\, Jesus \nwas not even born. Yet he made his presence felt to John the Baptist\, and more \nso to her. In Mary’s song\, his thoughts are uttered: the greatness of the humble\, \nthe blessings promised to the lowly\, the reversal of values effected by the Lord \nin exalting the poor and rejecting the proud\, the joy of those whom the world \nignores and who have the Lord with them; everything that the song proclaims \nis the same as the teaching promulgated in the Beatitudes and the Sermon on \nthe Mount. The very prelude expresses the tone and accent characteristic of the \npreaching of Jesus; the mother’s song foreshadows the hymn of thanksgiving \nuttered by the Son in the presence of God who showers the lowly and humble \nwith favors. At that time Jesus answered and said: ‘I thank you\, Father\, Lord \nof heaven and earth\, because you have hid these things from the wise and \nprudent and have revealed them to little ones. Yes\, Father\, for so it has seemed \ngood in your sight’. \nAs we hear Christ in his mother\, we also hear in her the entire Old \nTestament\, which is a prefigure of Christ. The Magnificat is almost wholly made \nup of biblical quotations. The mother of the Savior\, of the Desired One of Israel\, \nspeaks as the daughter\, or rather the queen\, of the patriarchs and prophets. And \nthis double relation with her Son\, who is everything for humanity\, depicts her \nso well that the Magnificat\, echo of the Old Testament and prelude to the New \nTestament\, is a very personal\, unified and spontaneous composition\, as well as \na prayer that was to become familiar to the Christian people. \nMary must have possessed a flair for poetry\, just as Jesus did. Jesus had \nthis gift of universal sympathy\, this promptness of responding to a contact with15 \nanything\, this facility and sincerity of wonder. We have but to recall\, for \nexample\, his reverential and moving words about the flowers of the fields. I tell \nyou that not even Solomon in all his glory was clothed like one of these. And if \nGod so clothes the grass of the field\, which grows today and is thrown into the \noven tomorrow\, will he not much more provide for you\, O you of little faith? \n‘God so clothes’: we can see our Lord bending over these humble marvels\, \njoyful and proud to be a man in the human universe of his Father’s creation. We \nmay well believe that Jesus wished to receive this very human gift from his \nmother\, just as he received his human nature from her. She must have \npossessed it before him. The proofs that she did are\, among others\, the special \nturn of poetry\, delicacy and taste found in the first chapters of St. Luke\, in which \nher influence stands out so clearly… The abundance of poetic bits occurring in \nthese chapters\, and only in them\, all have to do with her. But the Magnificat \nremains the clearest proof.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-memorial-of-bvm-12/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241006
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241007
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T111750Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T111750Z
UID:12583-1728172800-1728259199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Skema
DESCRIPTION:Biblical Readings for Office and Mass\n27th Week in Ordinary Time\n\n\nMass Readings: Sunday (B)\, Weekdays (II)\nOctober 6 – 12\, 2024\n\n\n\nSun\n6\nMon\n7\nTue\n8\nWed\n9\nThu\n10\nFri\n11\nSat\n12\n\n\nOffice\n27th Sunday\nOur Lady of the Rosary\nWeekday\nWeekday\nOffice for Vocations\nSt John XXIII\nWeekday\n\n\nVigils\nWis 2:12-24\nJudith 15:8-16:2\, 11-16\nWis 3:1-12\nWis 3:13-4:6\nWis 4:7-19\nWis 4:20-5:13\nWis 5:14-23\n\n\nLauds\nHos 9:1-9\nSir 39:12-22\nHos 9:10-17\nHos 10:1-8\nHos 10:9-15\nHos 11:1-7\nHos 11:8-11\n\n\nMass\n140\n461\n462\n463\n464\n465\n466\n\n\n1st\nGen 2:18-24\nGal 1:6-12\nGal 1:13-24\nGal 2:1-2\, 7-14\nGal 3:1-5\nGal 3:7-14\nGal 3:22-29\n\n\n2nd\nHeb 2:9-11\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nGospel\nMark 10:2-16\nLuke 10:25-37\nLuke 10:38-42\nLuke 11:1-4\nLuke 11:5-13\nLuke 11:15-26\nLuke 11:27-28\n\n\nVespers\n1 John 3:4-10\nActs 1:12-14\n1 John 3:11-18\n1 John 3:19-24\n1 John 4:1-6\n1 John 4:7-12\n1 John 4:13-21
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/skema-88/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241006
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241007
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T112200Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T112200Z
UID:12585-1728172800-1728259199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - 27th Sunday
DESCRIPTION:THEY ARE NO LONGER TWO \nBUT ONE \nFrom a commentary by Jacob of Serugh1 \n◊◊◊ \nIn his mysterious plans the Father had destined a bride for his only Son \nand presented her to him under the guise of prophetic images. Moses appeared \nand with deft hand sketched a picture of bridegroom and bride but immediately \ndrew a veil over it. In his book he wrote that a man should leave a father and \nmother so as to be joined to his wife\, that the two might in very truth become \none. The prophet Moses spoke of man and woman in this way in order to foretell \nChrist and his Church. With a prophet’s penetrating gaze he contemplated \nChrist becoming one with the Church through the mystery of water. He saw \nChrist even from the Virgin’s womb drawing the Church to himself\, and the \nChurch in the water of baptism drawing Christ to herself. Bridegroom and bride \nwere thus wholly united in a mystical manner\, which is why Moses wrote that \nthe two should become one. \nWith veiled face Moses contemplated Christ and the Church; the one he \ncalled “man” and the other “woman” so as not to reveal the full splendor of the \nreality. After the marriage celebration came Paul. He saw the veil covering their \nsplendor and lifted it\, revealing Christ and his Church to the whole world\, and \nshowing that it was they whom Moses had described in his prophetic vision. In \nan outburst of inspired joy the apostle exclaimed: This is a great mystery! He \nrevealed the meaning of the veiled picture the prophet had called man and \nwoman\, declaring: I know that it is Christ and his Church\, who were two before \nbut have now become one. \nWives are not united to their husbands as closely as the Church is to the \nSon of God. What husband but our Lord ever died for his wife\, and what bride \never chose a crucified man as her husband? Who ever gave his blood as a gift to \nhis wife except the one who died on the cross and sealed the marriage bond with \nhis wounds? Who was ever seen lying dead at his own wedding banquet with his \nwife at his side seeking to console herself by embracing him? At what other \ncelebration\, at what other feast is the bridegroom’s body distributed to the \nguests in the form of bread? \nDeath separates wives from husbands\, but in this case it is death that \nunites the bride to her beloved. He died on the cross\, bequeathed his body to his \nglorious spouse\, and now every day she receives and consumes it at his table. \nShe consumes it under the form of bread\, and under the form of wine that she \ndrinks\, so that the whole world may know that they are no longer two but one. \n  \n  \n  \n 
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-27th-sunday/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241007
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241008
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T112519Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T112519Z
UID:12587-1728259200-1728345599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Our Lady of the Rosary
DESCRIPTION:THE ROSARY \nOF THE BLESSED VIRGIN \nBy Fr Romano Guardini2 \n◊◊◊ \nTo linger in the domain of Mary is something divinely great. One does not \nask about the utility of truly noble things\, because they have their meaning \nwithin themselves. So it is of infinite meaning to draw a deep breath of this \npurity\, to be secure in the peace of this union with God. \nWith this we come back to what was said in the beginning. We need a \nplace of holy tranquility that is pervaded by the breath of God and where we \nmeet the great figures of the faith. This place is really the inaccessibility of God \nhimself which is opened to us only through Christ. All prayer begins when we \nbecome silent\, when we recollect our scattered thoughts and feel remorse at our \ntrespasses\, when we direct our thoughts toward God. If we do all this\, the place \nis thrown open\, not only as a domain of spiritual tranquility and mental \nconcentration\, but as something that comes from God. \nWe are always in need of this place\, especially when the convulsions of the \ntimes make clear something that has always existed but which is sometimes \nhidden by outward well-being and a prevailing “peace of mind”: namely\, the \nhomelessness of our lives. In such times\, a great courage is demanded from us: \nnot only a readiness to dispense with more and to accomplish more than usual\, \nbut to persevere in a vacuum we do not otherwise notice. So\, we require more \nthan ever this place of which we speak\, not to creep into to hide\, but as a place to \nfind the core of things\, to become calm and confident once more. For this \nreason the Rosary is so important in times like ours–assuming\, of course\, that \nall slackness and exaggeration are done away with\, and it is used in its clear and \noriginal forcefulness. This is all the more important because the Rosary does \nnot require any special preparation. We do not need to generate thoughts of \nwhich we are not capable at the moment or at any other time. We step into a \nwell-ordered world\, meet familiar images and find roads that lead us to the \nessential. \nThe Rosary has the character of a sojourn. Its essence is the sheltering \nsecurity of a quiet\, holy world that envelops the person who is praying. This is \nparticularly evident when we compare it with the Stations of the Cross\, which \nhave the character of a journey. We follow the Master from one “station” to \nanother\, and feel at the end that we have reached our goal. The Rosary is not a \nroad\, but a place\, and it has no goal but a depth. To linger in it has great \ncompensations.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-our-lady-of-the-rosary-2/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241008
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241009
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T112617Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T112617Z
UID:12589-1728345600-1728431999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading
DESCRIPTION:OUR BOAST \nIS THE CROSS OF CHRIST \nFrom a letter by St Paulinus of Nola \n◊◊◊ \nFrom the beginning of the world Christ suffers in all his own. He is “the \nbeginning and the end”\, who is hidden in the law and revealed in the gospel\, a \nLord ever “wonderful” and suffering and triumphant “in his saints”. In Abel he \nwas slain by his brother\, in Noah he was ridiculed by his son\, in Jacob he was \nreduced to servitude\, in Joseph he was sold\, in Moses he was abandoned and \nrejected\, in the prophets he was stoned and torn asunder\, in his apostles he was \npersecuted on land and sea\, and in his countless martyrs he was tortured and \nassassinated. \nHe now also bears our weaknesses and our sicknesses\, for he is himself \none like us\, exposed on our behalf to all evils and capable of enduring the \nweakness which without him we would be totally incapable of bearing. He it is \nwho bears the weight of the world for us and in us so that he might deliver us \nfrom it; see how he achieves power in weakness! It is he who suffers the taunts \nyou endure; and it is he whom the world hates in you. \nLet us give thanks to the Lord\, because he “wins out when he is judged.” \nAccording to this word of Scripture\, he it is who triumphs in us when\, taking the \ncondition of slavery\, he obtains for his servants the grace of freedom. \nAccomplishing the mysterious design of his goodness\, he assumes this form of a \nslave and consents to humble himself for us even to the death of the cross. \nThrough the lowliness which all could see he achieves our elevation to heaven\, \nwhich is interior and invisible. \nLook at the height from which we first fell; understand it well. It is by the \ndesign of God’s wisdom and goodness that we have been restored to life. In \nAdam we fell through pride\, and in Christ we are humbled so that we may efface \nthe ancient sin by the practice of the opposite virtue. We have offended the Lord \nby pride; we now please him by our humility. \nTherefore\, let us rejoice and glory in him who made ours both his battle \nand his victory when he said: “Take courage! I have overcome the world!”… He \nwho is unconquered will fight for us and conquer in us. The prince of darkness \nshall be cast out\, for if he is not expelled from the world where he is everywhere\, \nhe is expelled from the human heart. When faith enters us we shut out the evil \none and provide a place for Christ\, whose presence expels sin and spells exile for \nthe serpent who is dislodged.. \nLet the orators keep their eloquence\, the philosophers their wisdom\, the \nrich their wealth\, and kings their realms. Our glory\, riches and kingdom is \nChrist. Our wisdom lies in the foolishness of the gospel\, our strength in the \nweakness of the flesh\, and our glory in the stumbling block of the cross. \n“Through it the world has been crucified to me and I to the world\, so that I may \nlive for God. And the life I live now is not my own; Christ is living in me.”
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-222/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241009
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241010
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T112724Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T112724Z
UID:12591-1728432000-1728518399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading
DESCRIPTION:THE TRUE TEMPLE \nAND CITY OF GOD \nBy St Hilary of Poitiers3 \n◊◊◊ \nGod chose Zion for his abode and his dwelling place…But Zion was \nultimately destroyed. Where\, then\, is the everlasting throne of the Lord\, where \nhis eternal resting place\, where the temple on which he can reside? It is that \ntemple about which is written: “You are the temple of God\, and the Spirit of God \ndwells in you.” \nThis is the house and this is the temple of God\, filled with the knowledge \nand power of God; made fit for God’s indwelling by holiness of heart – to which \nthe prophet bore witness: “Holy is your temple\, wonderful in justice.” Our \nholiness\, justice\, and purity constitute a temple for the Lord. \nHence\, this temple must be built by God. [If it is] erected by human labor\, \nit will never last; [if] founded on worldly wisdom\, it will never hold together; [if \nit is only] kept by our foolish labors and care\, it will never be preserved. It is not \nto be erected on shifting sand but firmly founded on the prophets and the \napostles; with living stones must it take shape\, solidified by the cornerstone. \nWith its materials securely linked together it must grow to perfect maturity\, to \nthe stature of the body of Christ\, and is to be adorned with the beauty and \nsplendor of spiritual gifts… \nFor a long time already\, the Lord has been keeping watch over this city. \nHe guards Abraham on his pilgrimage\, rescues Isaac from immolation\, rewards \nJacob for his years of service\, and makes a powerful figure of Joseph sold into \nEgypt. He strengthens Moses in his conflict with Pharaoh\, delegates Joshua to \nwage wars\, delivers Daniel from all dangers\, and bestows the gift of wisdom on \nSolomon. \nThe Lord is there among his Prophets; he snatches up Elijah\, chooses \nElisha\, gives food to Daniel\, and refreshes the youths in the fiery furnace. He \ninforms Joseph by an angel of his virgin birth\, reassures Mary\, and sends John \nbefore him. \nHe chooses apostles\, and prays to his Father with the words: “Holy \nFather\, protect them; as long as I was with them\, I guarded them in your name.” \nFinally\, after his passion\, he promises that he himself will have an eternal care \nfor us: “Behold\, I am with you always\, until the end of the world.” \nSuch is the never-ending protection of this blessed and holy city\, which – \nformed as it is of many come together into one and found in each of us – is \nindeed the city of God.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-223/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241010
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241011
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T112844Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T112844Z
UID:12593-1728518400-1728604799@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - Office for Vocations
DESCRIPTION:THE ACTIVITY \nOF ALL ACTIVITIES \nFrom “The Golden Epistle” by William of St Thierry4 \n◊◊◊ \nIn the first place then the newcomer to the desert must be taught to follow \nthe teaching of the Apostle Paul and offer up his body as a living sacrifice\, \nconsecrated to God and worthy of his acceptance\, the workshop due from him as \na rational creature. Therefore the body is to be treated strictly\, so that it will not \nrebel or grow wanton\, yet in such a way that it will be able to serve\, for it has \nbeen given to the spirit to serve it. It is not to be regarded as the purpose of life \nbut as something without which we cannot live. For we cannot break off the \nfellowship which we have with the body whenever we want\, but we must wait \npatiently for it to be broken up in a lawful way and in the meantime observe the \nconventions of a valid partnership… \nThe new monk is then to be trained to follow the common observance and \nso bring under control the inordinate desires of his flesh by continual penance \nfor his past life\, and\, in order to despise all else\, to cultivate a contempt for \nhimself. He must at all times be fortified in advance against the temptations \nwhich are more savage in their assault upon the solitary who is a novice. The \nservant of God\, who is serving God gratuitously\, is unceasingly beset by vices \nthat try to make him accept the wages they offer him in the form of pleasures. \nThis comes at the devil’s suggestion\, the flesh making its desires felt and the \nworld providing material for them. The Lord our God also tempts us\, to see \nwhether we love him or not. Not that he does not know and wishes to find out. It \nis in order that we ourselves may realize the truth more fully as a result of the \ntemptation. \nBut it is easy to overcome and meet with reason temptations which give \ngrounds for suspicion or at first sight are obviously evil. It is those which \ninsinuate themselves under the appearance of good that are more difficult to \nrecognize and more dangerous to entertain. Just as it is very difficult to observe \ndue measure in what is believed to be good and not every desire for something \ngood is safe. \nThe place\, however\, where all temptations and evil and useless thoughts \ncollect\, is idleness. For the greatest evil which can befall the mind is unemployed \nleisure. The servant of God should never be idle\, although he is at leisure to \ndevote himself to God. A name which gives rise to such suspicion and suggests \nsuch waste of time and such an absence of manliness must not be given to a \nmatter of such unquestionable value\, of such holiness\, of such seriousness. Is \nleisure to devote one’s time to God idleness? Rather it is the activity of all \nactivities. Anyone who in his cell is not faithful and fervent in this activity is \nindeed idle\, whatever else he may do that is not done for the sake of this… \nThe aim of activity should not be merely to pass the day more or less \nenjoyably or at least without becoming too weary of leisure but also that when \nthe day is over it always leaves something in the mind that will contribute to the \nsoul’s advancement and that some fresh treasure is added each day to the \nheart’s store. A good monk should consider that he has lost a day of his life if \nduring the day he cannot remember having done any of the things for which a \nman lives in solitude.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-office-for-vocations-17/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241011
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241012
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T113044Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T113044Z
UID:12595-1728604800-1728691199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading - St John XXIII
DESCRIPTION:THE SPIRITUAL TESTAMENT \nAND LAST WISHES \nof St Pope John XXIII5 \n◊◊◊ \nOn the point of presenting myself before the One and Triune Lord who \ncreated me\, redeemed me\, chose me to be his priest and bishop\, and covered me \nwith unending graces\, I entrust my poor soul to His mercy; I humbly ask pardon \nfor my sins and deficiencies. I offer Him the little good\, although petty and \nimperfect\, that with His aid I have succeeded in doing\, for His glory\, for the \nservice of Holy Church\, for the edification of my brethren\, begging Him finally \nto receive me\, like a good and kind Father\, with His Saints into eternal \nhappiness. \nI profess once again with all my heart my entire Christian and Catholic \nfaith\, my adherence and subjection to the Holy Apostolic and Roman Church\, \nand my complete devotion and obedience to her August Head\, the Supreme \nPontiff\, whom it was my great honor to represent for long years in various \nregions of the East and West\, who at the end chose me to come to Venice as \nCardinal and Patriarch\, and whom I have always followed with sincere \naffection\, aside from and above any dignity conferred upon me. The sense of my \nown littleness and nothingness has always been my good companion\, keeping \nme humble and calm\, and making me employ myself to the best of my ability in \na constant exercise of obedience and charity for souls and for the interests of the \nKingdom of Jesus\, my Lord and my all. To Him be all glory; for me and for my \nmerit\, His mercy. \nI ask pardon of those whom I have unwittingly offended\, of all to whom I \nhave not been a source of edification. I feel that I have nothing to forgive anyone\, \nfor all who have known and dealt with me – including those who have offended \nme\, scorned me\, held me in bad esteem (with good reason\, for that matter)\, or \nhave been a source of affliction for me – I regard solely as brothers and \nbenefactors\, to whom I am grateful and for whom I pray and always will pray. \nBorn poor\, but of honorable and humble people\, I am particularly happy \nto die poor\, having given away\, in accord with the various demands and \ncircumstances of my simple and modest life\, for the benefit of the poor and of \nHoly Church that had nurtured me\, all that came into my hands – which was \nlittle enough as a matter of fact – during the years of my priesthood and \nepiscopacy. Outward appearances of ease and comfort often veiled hidden \nthorns of distressing poverty and kept me from giving with all the largess I \nwould have liked. I thank God for this grace of poverty which I vowed in my \nyouth\, poverty of spirit as a priest of the Sacred Heart\, and real poverty… \nAs I face death\, I recall each and every one – those who preceded me in \ntaking the final step\, those who will survive me and who will follow me. May \nthey pray for me. I will repay them from Purgatory or from Paradise\, where I \nhope to be received. I repeat it once again\, not because of my merits\, but because \nof the mercy of the Lord. At the moment for saying farewell\, or better still\, \narrivederci\, I once more remind everyone of what counts most in life: blessed \nJesus Christ\, His Holy Church\, His Gospel; and in the Gospel\, above all\, the \nPater noster in the spirit and heart of Jesus and the Gospel\, the truth and \ngoodness\, the goodness meek and kind\, active and patient\, victorious and \nunbowed.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-st-john-xxiii-4/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241012
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241013
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241006T113157Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241006T113157Z
UID:12597-1728691200-1728777599@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Vigils Reading
DESCRIPTION:ENTIRELY TURNED TOWARDS GOD \nBy Lucien Legrand6 \n◊◊◊ \nThe significance of Mary’s virginity is entirely different from both cultic \nvirginity and philosophical continence. Mary knows that her virginity has no \nvalue of its own and no power but that of the Spirit. She does not speak of the \ngreatness of her virginity. For her\, it is not virginity that makes her great: it is \nthe Lord. As far as she is concerned\, she is nothing and her virginity seals her \nnothingness. Because she is a virgin\, she is ‘poor’\, a contemptible thing\, \nconsidered worthless by the world. Of course\, in the case of Mary as in that of \nthe ‘Poor of Yahweh’ in the Old Testament\, poverty should be taken in the \nbiblical sense. It is not merely negative. It does not mean only destitution… \nPoverty is a religious attitude which underlies the spiritual development \nof the Old Testament and prepares the way for the abasement of the cross\, the \nimprint of which it bears by anticipation. Biblical poverty does indeed mean life \ndeprived of any human hope but also and mostly at its deepest\, radical \ndetachment\, total humility and consequently utter confidence in God. Mary’s \nvirginity belongs to this type of poverty. It is a form of that religious attitude \nmade up of faith and abandon\, joy and confidence; it is akin to humility and can \nbe summarized as an attitude of religious expectation. It is silence\, readiness\, \nemptiness. And her greatness comes from the faith and confidence in god which \nspring in the heart on that emptiness\, and from the answer God gave to that \nfaith and confidence. \nVirginity of this kind differs entirely from its pagan counterparts. It does \nnot represent an attempt to substitute our influence for God’s power: on the \ncontrary\, Mary has no other ambition than to be the handmaid of the Lord. \nNeither does Mary’s virginity correspond to a merely human longing for purity \nand moral greatness. Her virginity does not belong so much to the moral as to \nthe theological virtues. It manifests an attitude before god rather than an effort \nof moral perfection and of self-achievement. Luke’s Gospel of the Infancy does \nnot describe in Mary a heroic form of the virtue of chastity. What it sees in her is \nsheer faith and hope which has no reliance in creatures but is entirely turned \ntoward God.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/vigils-reading-224/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241013
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241014
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241012T173320Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241012T173320Z
UID:12611-1728777600-1728863999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Skema: 28th Week in Ordinary Time
DESCRIPTION:Biblical Readings for Office and Mass\n28th Week in Ordinary Time\n\n\nMass Readings: Sunday (B)\, Weekdays (II)\nOctober 13 – 19\, 2024\n\n\n\nSun\n13\nMon\n14\nTue\n15\nWed\n16\nThu\n17\nFri\n18\nSat\n19\n\n\nOffice\n28th Sunday\nWeekday\nSt Teresa of Avila\nSt Hedwig\nSt Ignatius of Antioch\nSt Luke\nNorth American Martyrs\n\n\nVigils\nWis 6:1-11\nWis 6:12-21\nWis 6:22-7:12\nWis 7:13-22a\nWis 7:22b-8:1\nEzek 1:1-14\nWis 8:2-16\n\n\nLauds\nHos 12:1-7\nHos 12:8-15\nHos 13:1-8\nHos 13:9-14:1\nHos 14:2-10\nIsa 52:7-10\nJob 1:1-5\n\n\nMass\n143\n467\n468\n469\n470\n661\n472\n\n\n1st\nWis 7:7-11\nGal 4:22-24\, 26-27\, 31-5:1\nGal 5:1-6\nGal 5:18-25\nEph 1:1-10\n2 Tim 4:10-17b\nEph 1:15-23\n\n\n2nd\nHeb 4:12-13\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nGospel\nMark 10:17-30\nLuke 11:29-32\nLuke 11:37-41\nLuke 11:42-46\nLuke 11:47-54\nLuke 10:1-9\nLuke 12:8-12\n\n\nVespers\n1 John 5:1-5\n1 John 5:6-12\n1 John 5:13-17\n1 John 5:18-21\n2 John 1-6\nActs 11:19-26\n2 John 7-13
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/skema-28th-week-in-ordinary-time/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20241013
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20241014
DTSTAMP:20260403T193721
CREATED:20241012T173909Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241012T173909Z
UID:12613-1728777600-1728863999@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
DESCRIPTION:FOLLOWING CHRIST’S CALL\nFrom a commentary by St John Henry Newman 1\n◊◊◊\nAll through our life Christ is calling us. He called us first in Baptism\, but\nafterwards also; whether we obey his voice or not\, he graciously calls us still. If\nwe fall from our Baptism\, he calls us to repent; if we are striving to fulfill our\ncalling\, he calls us on from grace to grace\, and from holiness to holiness\, while\nlife is given us. Abraham was called from his home. Elisha from his farm\,\nNathanael from his retreat; we are all in course of calling\, on and on\, from one\nthing to another\, having no resting place\, but mounting towards our eternal\nrest\, and obeying one command only to have another put upon us. He calls us\nagain and again\, in order to justify us… and more and more\, to sanctify and\nglorify us. \nIt were well if we understood this…that Christ is\, as it were\, walking\namong us\, and by his hand\, or eye\, or voice\, bidding us to follow him. We do not\nunderstand that his call is a thing which takes place now. We think it took place\nin the Apostles’ day; but we do not believe in it\, we do not look out for it in our\nown case. We have not eyes to see the Lord; far distant from the beloved Apostle\,\nwho knew Christ even when the rest of the apostles knew him not. When he\nstood on the shore after his resurrection\, and bade them cast the net into the\nsea\, that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter\, It is the Lord. \nNow what I mean is this: that they who are living religiously\, have from\ntime to time truths they did not know before\, or had no need to consider\,\nbrought before them forcibly; truths which involve duties\, which are in fact\nprecepts\, and claim obedience. In this and such-like ways Christ calls us now.\nThere is nothing miraculous or extraordinary in his dealings with us. He works\nthrough our natural faculties and circumstances of life. Still what happens to us\nin providence is in all essential respects what his voice was to those whom he\naddressed when on earth; whether he commands by a visible presence\, or by a\nvoice\, or by our consciences\, it matters not\, so that we feel it to be a command. If\nit is a command\, it may be obeyed or disobeyed; it may be accepted as Samuel or\nSt. Paul accepted it\, or put aside after the manner of the young man who had\ngreat possessions. \nWe need not fear spiritual pride in following Christ’s call\, if we follow it as\npeople in earnest. Earnestness has no time to compare itself with the state of\nothers; earnestness is simply set in doing God’s will. It simply says: Speak\,\nLord\, for thy servant heareth; Lord\, what wilt thou have me to do? Oh that we\nhad more of this spirit! Oh that we could take that simple view of things\, as to\nfeel that the one thing which lies before us is to please God! \nLet us beg and pray Him day by day to reveal Himself to our souls more\nfully; to quicken our senses; to give us sight and hearing\, taste and touch of the\nworld to come; so to work within us that we may sincerely say: Thou shalt guide\nme with Thy counsel\, and after that receive me to glory. \n1\nJourney with the Fathers – Year B – New City Press – 1993 – pg 124.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/28th-sunday-in-ordinary-time/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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UID:12615-1728864000-1728950399@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:Weekday
DESCRIPTION:THE UNIVERSAL CALL\nTO HOLINESS\nFrom the encyclical Lumen Gentium 2\n◊◊◊\nThe Church\, whose mystery is set forth by this sacred Council\, is held\, as a\nmatter of faith\, to be unfailingly holy. This is because Christ\, the Son of God\,\nwho with the Father and the Spirit is hailed as “alone holy\,” loved the Church as\nhis Bride\, giving himself up for her so as to sanctify her; he joined her to himself\nas his body and endowed her with the gift of the Holy Spirit for the glory of God. \nTherefore all in the Church\, whether they belong to the hierarchy or are cared\nfor by it\, are called to holiness\, according to the apostle’s saying: “For this is the\nwill of God\, your sanctification”. This holiness of the Church is constantly\nshown forth in the fruits of grace which the Spirit produces in the faithful and so\nit must be; it is expressed in many ways by the individuals who\, each in his or\nher own state of life\, tend to the perfection of love\, thus sanctifying others; it\nappears in a certain way of its own in the practice of the counsels which have\nbeen usually called “evangelical.” This practice of the counsels prompted by the\nHoly Spirit\, undertaken by many Christians whether privately or in a form or\nstate sanctioned by the Church\, gives and should give a striking witness and\nexample of that holiness. \nThe Lord Jesus\, divine teacher and model of all perfection\, preached\nholiness of life (of which he is the author and maker) to each and every one of his\ndisciples without distinction: “You\, therefore\, must be perfect\, as your\nheavenly Father is perfect”. For he sent the Holy Spirit to all to move them\ninteriorly to love God with their whole heart\, with their whole soul\, with their\nwhole understanding\, and with their whole strength\, and to love one another as\nChrist loves them. \nThe followers of Christ\, called by grace\, and justified in the Lord Jesus\,\nhave been made sons and daughters of God in the baptism of faith and partakers\nof the divine nature\, and so are truly sanctified. They must therefore hold on to\nand perfect in their lives that sanctification which they have received from God.\nThey are told by the apostle to live “as is fitting among saints”\, and to put on “as\nGod’s chosen ones\, holy and beloved\, compassion\, kindness\, lowliness\,\nmeekness\, and patience”\, to have the fruits of the Spirit for their sanctification.\nBut since we all offend in may ways\, we constantly need God’s mercy and must\npray everyday: “And forgive us our debts.” \nIt is therefore quite clear that all Christians in any state or walk of life\nare called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of love\, and by\nthis holiness a more human manner of life is fostered also in earthly society. \n2 Vatican II Documents. Austin Flannery\, OP. Costello Pub. 1981.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/weekday-15/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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UID:12617-1728950400-1729036799@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:St. Teresa of Avila
DESCRIPTION:SURRENDERING OUR WILL TO GOD\nFrom the writing of St Teresa of Ávila 3\n◊◊◊\nWe can promise easily enough to give up our will to someone else\, but\nwhen it comes to the test we find it the most difficult thing in the world to do\nperfectly. But God knows what each of us is able to bear\, and when he finds a\nvaliant soul he does not hesitate to accomplish his will in that person.\nSo I want to warn you and make you understand what God’s will is\, so that\nyou may realize with whom you are dealing (as the saying goes) and what the\ngood Jesus is offering on your behalf to the Father. I want you to make sure you\nknow what you are giving him when you say\, “Your will be done.” You are asking\nthat God’s will may be done in you; it is this and nothing else you are praying for.\nYou need not be afraid he will give you wealth or pleasures or great honors or\nany earthly good things; his love for you is not so weak as that. He sets a far\ngreater value on your gift and desires to reward you generously\, giving you his\nkingdom even in this life. \nWould you like to see how he treats people who make this petition without\nreserve? Ask his glorious Son\, who made it genuinely and resolutely in the\ngarden. Was not God’s will accomplished in him through the trials\, the\nsufferings\, the insults and the persecutions he sent him until at last his life was\nended on the cross? You see then what God gave to one he loved best of all\, and\nthat shows you what his will is. These things are his gifts in this world\, and he\ngives them in proportion to his love for us. To those he loves most he gives more\,\nto those less dear he gives less; his gifts are measured by the courage he sees we\nhave and the love we bear his Majesty. Fervent love can suffer a great deal for his\nsake\, while lukewarmness will endure very little. I myself believe that love is the\ngauge of the crosses\, great or small\, that we are able to bear. \nSo if you have this love\, think what you are doing. Do not let the promises\nyou make to so great a Lord be no more than empty compliments\, but brace\nyourselves to suffer whatever God wishes. Any other way of surrendering our\nwill to him is like offering someone a precious stone\, entreating him to accept it\,\nand then holding onto it when he puts out his hand to take it. Such mockery is\nnot for him who endured so much mockery for us. If for no other reason\, it\nwould be wrong to mock him in this way every time we say the Lord’s Prayer. Let\nus give him once and for all the precious stone we have offered him so many\ntimes — for he in fact first gave us the thing we now give back to the Father. \n3Obras de Santa Teresa\, pp. 238-242; reprinted in Meditations on the Sunday Gospels: Year C; introduced and edited by John\nE. Rotelle\, Hyde Park\, NY: New City Press\, 1995\, pp. 106-107.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/st-teresa-of-avila/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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UID:12619-1729036800-1729123199@laycisterciansofgethsemani.org
SUMMARY:St. Hedwig
DESCRIPTION:ST HEDWIG OF SILESIA\nFrom Butler’s Lives of the Saints 4\n◊◊◊\nHedwig was born in Bavaria about the year 1174\, the daughter of\nBerthold\, count of Andechs. When she was only twelve she was married to\nHenry\, duke of Silesia. Together they founded a large number of religious\nhouses\, the best known of which was a convent for Cistercian nuns at Trebnitz\,\nnear Breslau in modern Poland\, the first convent for women in Silesia. These\nfoundations helped both to develop the religious life of the people and to spread\na common German culture throughout their lands. They also established\nhospitals and a house for lepers. Their seventh and last child was born in 1209\,\nand Hedwig persuaded her husband to take a mutual vow of chastity. They lived\napart\, with Hedwig taking up residence close to the nunnery at Trebnitz\, and\noften sharing the austere life of the nuns. She recommended fasting to those\nwho wanted to live holier lives\, saying that it could “master concupiscence\, lift\nup the soul\, confirm it in the paths of virtue\, and prepare a fine reward for the\nChristian”. \nMuch of the rest of Hedwig’s life was spent in trying to keep peace\nbetween her warring sons Henry and Conrad and in attempts to make peace\nbetween her husband and his enemies. When Henry died in 1238\, she\ncomforted those who mourned him with the words\, “Would you oppose the will\nof God? Our lives are his; our will is whatever he is pleased to ordain\, whether\nour own death or that of our friends.” She took the habit at Trebnitz but did not\ntake any religious vows\, remaining free to administer her property for the good\nof the poor. We are told that she took great care to instruct the uneducated in\ntheir religion\, on one occasion having an old woman share a room with her so\nthat they could go through the Our Father together whenever there was a free\nmoment. After ten weeks of patient teaching\, the old woman could repeat and\nunderstand the prayer. \nWhen her son Henry II was killed in 1240 fighting the Tartar invaders\,\nHegwig knew of his death three days before a messenger arrived from the\nbattlefield. Other miracles were attributed to her; she cured a blind man\, for\nexample\, and had the gift of prophecy\, foretelling her own death in October\n1243. She was canonized in 1267\, and her feast was extended to the Western\nChurch in 1706. \n4\nButler’s Lives of the Saints – New Full Edition – October – The Liturgical Press – Collegeville\, MN – 1997.
URL:https://laycisterciansofgethsemani.org/event/st-hedwig/
CATEGORIES:Vigils Readings
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