ST. ANDREW, APOSTLE - 2023

DAILY HOLY MASS READINGS

Follow me, says the Lord,
and I will make you into fishers of men. MT 4:19

ROMANS 10:9-18 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

Thank You for the Apostles, the Twelve, and for Peter whom You placed in authority over them. To Peter, You have given the charism of infallibility in matters concerning faith and morals so the Church You established will never stray the least bit from divinely revealed Truth. You chose the Twelve, You taught them. They lived with You, ate with You, they were powerful witnesses to all the miracles. They touched You and were touched by You. Often You withdrew away from the crowds and You taught them privately. They saw You after Your resurrection not once but many times. You spoke to them about the Holy Spirit that they would receive while they waited in prayer with Mary in the upper room and the Holy Spirit descended on them filled them and transformed them from weak, frightened men into men of great valor who having received their mission from You to go out into the ends of the earth and spread the Good News did so. They were all martyred except for the beloved disciple, John to whom You entrusted Your Mother, the Virgin Mary.

We thank You for the successors to Peter and the Apostles who faithfully carry on the mission through priests, deacons, and the lay faithful to this day and will continue to do so till the end of time and Your Second Coming.  

St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles assures us that anyone who makes this confession with their lips that You are Lord and believing this from their heart will be made righteous and will be saved. Belief is the first step. The Apostles didn't just confess what they believed - they lived out their faith in season and out of season, whether it was convenient or inconvenient, when in danger or in safety. With no thought for their personal comfort, despite being imprisoned, persecuted, facing all kinds of threats to their lives, traveling in all kinds of weather, undeterred even when facing hostile crowds, they preached the Good News and more importantly they lived the Good News and were martyred. They died joyfully because they were considered worthy to lay down their lives for You and for the Gospel.

So yes, faith is the basis by which we begin but it is only the first step - our entire life must be a witness to our faith or else it is a sham. No one is saved by faith alone as St. James says, So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith without works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith without works is barren?

Lord Jesus, Beloved of my soul, if I have yet made a beginning to demonstrate by my works a living, vibrant faith then grant me the grace to begin now while I still have today for tomorrow is guaranteed to no one. 

PSALM 18(19):2-5 ©

The heavens proclaim the glory of God,
and the firmament shows forth the work of his hands.
Day unto day takes up the story
and night unto night makes known the message.

No speech, no word, no voice is heard
yet their span extends through all the earth,
their words to the utmost bounds of the world.

Their word goes forth through all the earth.

MATTHEW 4:18-22 ©

My Soul's Beloved,

You are always passing by. You are always inviting us into a deeper relationship with You. You have a mission for us, a plan for our lives, and unless we pay attention, we lift up our heads from whatever our preoccupation is and we look at You meet Your gaze, and hear Your call which is urgent and personal we will miss the opportunity to become a part of the great work to which every baptized Christian is called.

Today as the Church celebrates the feast of St. Andrew, Apostle and martyr, we reflect on Your call to the brothers, Simon and Andrew, and James and John. They were busy with their trade, their livelihood but they saw You walking by the Sea of Galilee, they looked at You, they heard Your voice and Your invitation - ‘Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.’ All four men heard the call and we are told that at once they left what they were doing - Simon and Andrew left their nets, and James and John left the boat and their father and followed You.

So many of us hear You call and we pretend we do not hear You. Or we hear You and ignore the invitation because we are too preoccupied with the cares or the pleasures of this world. If today we hear Your voice let us not harden our hearts but grant us the grace to leave everything behind and follow You with an undivided heart. Thank You, Lord.