The spirit you received is the spirit of sons,
and it makes us cry out, ‘Abba, Father!’ ROM 8:15
2 CORINTHIANS 11:1-11
My Soul's Beloved,
St. Paul is the model for what all Bishops and priests ought to be as they pastor their flock, leading them with cords of love, and tenderly shepherding them into the Kingdom of God. We, on our part, must be grateful, for their sacrificial love as they spend their lives for us. How easily we criticize them, gossip about them, and wound them down with uncharitable talk.
St. Paul experienced it all - the love of the people in the different churches he established in various places during his missionary journey, as well as the jealousy and hatred of rival false preachers, as well as from Jews who were also jealous of the large numbers that came to believe in the Good News and were baptized.
Today, as I read this passage, it was as if for the first time, and I was struck by the wonder and sublime work of God's mercy through His anointed and consecrated priests who arrange and prepare the faithful under their care to become Your Bride. Eager as we may be, Beloved, to be espoused to You, the sinister serpent is even more eagerly luring us away from the bridal chamber with his deceit and lies. Foolishly, many of us, like Eve, are tempted, and we fall. But even if we do, Lord, grant us the grace to return swiftly, repenting and making a good Confession so we can be grafted back into Your Body.
Give us the grace to be obedient and humble and allow ourselves to be guided in all things by Holy Mother Church, and we will never stray from the Truth that will keep us on the Way that leads to eternal Life with You.
I only wish you were able to tolerate a little foolishness from me. But of course: you are tolerant towards me. You see, the jealousy that I feel for you is God’s own jealousy: I arranged for you to marry Christ so that I might give you away as a chaste virgin to this one husband. But the serpent, with his cunning, seduced Eve, and I am afraid that in the same way your ideas may get corrupted and turned away from simple devotion to Christ. Because any new-comer has only to proclaim a new Jesus, different from the one that we preached, or you have only to receive a new spirit, different from the one you have already received, or a new gospel, different from the one you have already accepted – and you welcome it with open arms. As far as I can tell, these arch-apostles have nothing more than I have. I may not be a polished speechmaker, but as for knowledge, that is a different matter; surely we have made this plain, speaking on every subject in front of all of you.
Or was I wrong, lowering myself so as to lift you high, by preaching the gospel of God to you and taking no fee for it? I was robbing other churches, living on them so that I could serve you. When I was with you and ran out of money, I was no burden to anyone; the brothers who came from Macedonia provided me with everything I wanted. I was very careful, and I always shall be, not to be a burden to you in any way, and by Christ’s truth in me, this cause of boasting will never be taken from me in the regions of Achaia. Would I do that if I did not love you? God knows I do.
PSALM 110(111):1-4,7-8
Your works, Lord, are justice and truth.
I will thank the Lord with all my heart
in the meeting of the just and their assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord,
to be pondered by all who love them.
Or was I wrong, lowering myself so as to lift you high, by preaching the gospel of God to you and taking no fee for it? I was robbing other churches, living on them so that I could serve you. When I was with you and ran out of money, I was no burden to anyone; the brothers who came from Macedonia provided me with everything I wanted. I was very careful, and I always shall be, not to be a burden to you in any way, and by Christ’s truth in me, this cause of boasting will never be taken from me in the regions of Achaia. Would I do that if I did not love you? God knows I do.
PSALM 110(111):1-4,7-8
Your works, Lord, are justice and truth.
I will thank the Lord with all my heart
in the meeting of the just and their assembly.
Great are the works of the Lord,
to be pondered by all who love them.
Majestic and glorious his work,
his justice stands firm forever.
He makes us remember his wonders.
The Lord is compassion and love.
His works are justice and truth,
his precepts are all of them sure,
standing firm for ever and ever;
they are made in uprightness and truth.
his justice stands firm forever.
He makes us remember his wonders.
The Lord is compassion and love.
His works are justice and truth,
his precepts are all of them sure,
standing firm for ever and ever;
they are made in uprightness and truth.
Your works, Lord, are justice and truth.
MATTHEW 6:7-15
My Soul's Beloved,
MATTHEW 6:7-15
My Soul's Beloved,
The prayer that You taught Your disciples to pray when they asked You to teach them how to, You taught them this God-breathed prayer.
Lord, both Your Mother Mary and Your foster father, St. Joseph, would have taught You to pray from Your infant years. They would have listened to You delightedly as You lisped the prayers they taught You to Your Father. Surely these holy sentiments in prayer, they taught, would have been incorporated into the prayer that You taught Your disciples, which they, in turn, have handed down to us.
You draw us with You into the loving relationship. You instruct us to address Him as our Father, since this is His desire. As our heavenly Father, He will give us all that we need in this life, both temporal and spiritual. We just need to approach Him with the faith of a child and to persevere in prayer, imploring Him to supply all our needs. We must do so with confidence knowing that even if we have to wait, at an hour known to Him, He will give us all that we have asked for according to His most perfect will if not, He will give us something even better for He is the most loving of Fathers.
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘In your prayers do not babble as the pagans do, for they think that by using many words they will make themselves heard. Do not be like them; your Father knows what you need before you ask him. So you should pray like this:
‘Our Father in heaven,
may your name be held holy,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven those who are in debt to us.
And do not put us to the test,
but save us from the evil one.
‘Yes, if you forgive others their failings, your heavenly Father will forgive you yours; but if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive your failings either.’