The Adorable and Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

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Catholic Website of the Week

For those traveling this summer and needing to get to the Holy Mass.
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MASS TIMES AND CATHOLIC CHURCHESthroughout the US

http://www.masstimes.org/


Simply type in the town you will be in.


https://thecatholictravelguide.com/
Great advice for Catholic travelers

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Diocesan News AND BEYOND
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A bit of humor…

 Some Thoughts:
-“What's the name of your new dog?” “I don’t know. He won’t tell.”


-Daddy reads some bedtime stories to make little Jonny fall asleep.  Half an hour later mommy opens quietly the door and asks: “And, is he asleep?”  Little Jonny answers: “Yes, finally.”



50 Things You'll (probably) Never Hear Catholics Say

16)  Go ahead and ask me all your questions about Catholicism.  I feel pretty confident that I can answer all of them.


17)  There are too many people in the front pews at Mass.


18)  I had my conversion through Religious Ed.


19)  Birth Control or Natural Family Planning (NFP)?  I haven’t really heard any strong opinions one way or the other.


20)  Donuts after Mass AGAIN?!?!


21)  The Catechism of the Catholic Church, that 2600 page book? Yeah, it's a pretty quick read. Totally beach material.


22)  All that exorcism stuff doesn’t freak me out at all. 


23)  You're interested in celibacy, too?!!


24)  G.K. Chesterton… He was Anglican, right?


25)  I don't know who to pray to when I lose my stuff!


26)  I never really get distracted during the Rosary either.


27)  Latin Tridentine Mass and Novus Ordo are practically the same thing.


28)  I, too, have a devotion to St. Willibald.


29)  How ‘bout them Crusades?!


30)  Mary who?


31)  I just wish the Sisters of Life were more joyful.


32)  I’m not at all self-conscious after Ash Wednesday Mass.  Let’s go to the disco.


33)  What marriage controversy?


34)  I think St. Patrick would be proud of how we celebrate him.


35)  I miss Limbo.


 


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Several days ago as I left a meeting at our church, I desperately gave myself a personal TSA pat down. 
I was looking for my keys.  They were not in my pockets.  A quick search in the meeting room revealed nothing.


Suddenly I realized, I must have left them in the car.  

Frantically, I headed for the parking lot.  My wife, Diane, has scolded me many times for leaving the keys in the ignition.  My theory is the ignition is the best place not to lose them.  Her theory is that the car will be stolen.  

As I burst through the doors of the church, I came to a terrifying conclusion.  Her theory was right. The parking lot was empty.
 
I immediately called the police, gave them my location, confessed that I had left my keys in the car and that it had been stolen.  

Then I made the most difficult call of all, “Honey,” I stammered.  I always call her “honey”in times like these.  “I left my keys in the car, and it has been stolen.”
 
There was a period of silence.  I thought the call had been dropped, but then I heard Diane’s voice. “Ken” she barked, “I dropped you off!” 

Now it was my turn to be silent.  Embarrassed, I said, “Well, can you please come and get me.”  

Diane retorted, “I will, as soon as I can convince this policeman I have not stolen your car!”


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0 Jesus!  divine Savior, from whose Heart comes forth this bitter complaint, "I looked for one that would comfort me, and I found none," graciously accept the feeble consolation we offer You, and aid us so powerfully by your grace, that we may, for the time to come, shun more and more all that can displease You, and prove ourselves in everything, and everywhere, and forever Your most faithful and devoted servants. We ask it through Your Sacred Heart, O Lord, who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit  one God, world without end.  Amen. ​

 
"Christ is the light of humanity; and it is, accordingly, the heart-felt desire of this sacred Council, being gathered together in the Holy Spirit, that, by proclaiming his Gospel to every creature, it may bring to all men that light of Christ which shines out visibly from the Church." These words open the Second Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church. By choosing this starting point, the Council demonstrates that the article of faith about the Church depends entirely on the articles concerning Christ Jesus. The Church has no other light than Christ's; according to a favorite image of the Church Fathers, the Church is like the moon, all its light reflected from the sun."  -Catechism of the Catholic Church #748

+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - July 14th, 2019


The First Reading- Deuteronomy 30: 10-14
Moses said to the people: "If only you would heed the voice of the LORD, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes that are written in this book of the law, when you return to the LORD, your God, with all your heart and all your soul. "For this command that I enjoin on you today is not too mysterious and remote for you. It is not up in the sky, that you should say, 'Who will go up in the sky to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may carry it out?' Nor is it across the sea, that you should say, 'Who will cross the sea to get it for us and tell us of it, that we may carry it out?' No, it is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry it out."
Reflection 
We are to love God and our neighbor with all the strength of our being, as the scholar of the Law answers Jesus in this week’s Gospel. This command is nothing remote or mysterious—it’s already written in our hearts, in the book of Sacred Scripture. “You have only to carry it out,” Moses says in this week’s First Reading.
Adults - Do you ever look at the Ten Commandments and think that living them out is too remote for those of us living in these times? Meditate and do some research on how Catholic are to live out the Commandments in their lives. 
Teens - The Ten Commandments go hand in hand with the Beatitudes. Take some time this week to read through both, and contemplate how they work together. 
Kids - Which commandment is hardest for you? Why do you think that is? Ask God to help you live it better!


Responsorial- Psalm 69: 14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 37
R.Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
I pray to you, O LORD,
for the time of your favor, O God!
In your great kindness answer me
with your constant help.
Answer me, O LORD, for bounteous is your kindness:
in your great mercy turn toward me.
R. Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
I am afflicted and in pain;
let your saving help, O God, protect me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving.
Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
"See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not."
R. Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
For God will save Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah.
The descendants of his servants shall inherit it,
and those who love his name shall inhabit it.
R. Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.
Reflection 
-We are to love like the singer of this week’s Psalm—like those whose prayers have been answered, like those whose lives have been saved, who have known the time of His favor, have seen God in His great mercy turn toward us. This is the love that leads to eternal life, the love Jesus commands today of each of us—“Go and do likewise.” What prayers has God answered for you recently? What situations do you need to offer up to Him this week?


The Second Reading- Colossians 1: 15-20
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things he himself might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile all things for him, making peace by the blood of his cross through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.
Reflection
Jesus is “the image of the invisible God,” this week’s Epistle tells us. In Him, the love of God has come very near to us. By the “blood of His Cross”—by bearing His neighbors’ sufferings in His own body, being Himself stripped and beaten and left for dead—He saved us from bonds of sin, reconciled us to God and to one another. Try to do an intentional Work of Mercy this week.


The Holy Gospel according to Luke 10:25-27
There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said, "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?" He said in reply, "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." He replied to him, "You have answered correctly; do this and you will live." But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man fell victim to robbers as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead. A priest happened to be going down that road, but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. Likewise a Levite came to the place, and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he lifted him up on his own animal, took him to an inn, and cared for him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction, 'Take care of him. If you spend more than what I have given you, I shall repay you on my way back.' Which of these three, in your opinion, was neighbor to the robbers' victim?" He answered, "The one who treated him with mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
Reflection
We are to love God and our neighbor with all the strength of our being, as the scholar of the Law answers Jesus in this week’s Gospel. The scholar, however, wants to know where he can draw the line. That’s the motive behind his question: “Who is my neighbor?” In his compassion, the Samaritan in Jesus’ parable reveals the boundless mercy of God—who came down to us when we were fallen in sin, close to dead, unable to pick ourselves up. Like the Samaritan, He pays the price for us, heals the wounds of sin, pours out on us the oil and wine of the sacraments, entrusts us to the care of His Church, until He comes back for us. Because His love has known no limits, ours cannot either. We are to love as we have been loved, to do for others what He has done for us—joining all things together in His Body, the Church. This is the love that leads to eternal life, the love Jesus commands today of each of us—“Go and do likewise.”
Adults - How do you combine justice and mercy in your life? How do you make sure you are living the way God asks, but also being merciful to those around you who believe differently than you? 
Teens - Who do you know that needs the kind of love we see in the Good Samaritan?
Kids - Do a good deed for someone else as often as possible this week!


One way to express love for one's neighbor is to perform the "works of mercy," which get their name from the fact that they are not duties in justice. There are fourteen such works, seven spiritual and seven corporal. The spiritual are: To convert the sinner; To instruct the ignorant; To counsel the doubtful; To comfort the sorrowful; To bear wrongs patiently; To forgive injuries; To pray for the living and the dead. The corporal works are: To feed the hungry; To give drink to the thirsty; To clothe the naked; To shelter the homeless; To visit the sick; To visit the imprisoned; To bury the dead.

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The Blessed Virgin with her Immaculate Heart shown

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Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
 
      She that, “kept all things, reflecting on them in her heart (Luke2:51),” is the source of Jesus' Sacred Heart.  For if Mary did not first conceive Jesus in her Immaculate Heart, she would have never said yes to the Angel Gabriel and conceived Jesus Christ in her womb. 
      Mary has a heart that is for all men.  She who received our Lord Jesus with unimaginable love in her heart and body, she who raised Him and treasured the moments she shared with Him, she who saw Him go forth from her side into a world that loved and despised Him, she whose heart was pierced when she saw Him so cruelly treated by men and pierced in His own Sacred Heart with a lance as He hung on the Cross, is the same woman and the same Immaculate Heart that loves you and I more than we can ever conceive.   And that Heart is the one shelter we most desire to dwell in (whether we recognize it or not) for it there where Jesus and His Sacred Heart dwells! 
       Let us turn toward and love the Heart of Blessed MaryImmaculate because she was conceived without sin in the womb of her mother, St. Anne; sorrowful because she beheld the death of her beloved Son and beholds your sinfulness and mine, but this is your Heart and mine to dwell in forever because she loves and is completely united to Jesus Christ, and Jesus and Mary are our true comfort and our true strength!
 Peace and prayers in Jesus through Mary, loved by Saint Joseph,
Father Robert


P.S.  This coming Sunday is the  14th Sunday of Ordinary Time.  >>> Readings 

P.S.S.  At the end of E-weekly is this week's readings with reflections and questions for self or family.
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“Helpful Hints of Life”

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Communication


Communication in today’s world is expected to be brief, quick, “close the deal” communication.  However, we as human beings need deep, heartfelt communication - the kind that causes us to take risks and let our guard down.  This type of communication is difficult.  We have all been wounded and have reasons to censor ourselves.  But God has created us to be in communion with each other, and therefore in communication with each other. 



Devotion of the Five First Saturdays
 
Given by Our Lady of Fatima and the Infant Jesus to Sister Lucia, a devotion to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin
in reparation for the 5 sins against her Heart.
 The Virgin of Fatima speaks to the three children at Famita Portugal in 1918:
"You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart.  If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace... I shall come to ask for... the Communion of reparation on the first Saturdays..."


The devotion involves the following practices on five consecutive first Saturdays of the month, with the specific intention of making reparation for the five gravest offenses of man against the Blessed Virgin. 

1. Go to Confession (within 8 days before or 8 days after the first Saturday) 

2. Receive the Holy Eucharist 

3. Pray five decades of the Rosary 

4."Keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on fifteen mysteries of the Rosary."
 
On December 10, 1925, the Most Holy Virgin appeared to Lucy of Fatima, and by her side, elevated on a luminous cloud, was the Child Jesus. The Most Holy Virgin rested her hand on Lucy's shoulder, and as she did so, she showed her a Heart surrounded with thorns, which she was holding in her other hand. At the same time, the Child Jesus said:
 
"Have compassion on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother, covered with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to make an act of reparation to remove them."
Then the Most Holy Virgin said:
 "Look, my daughter, at my Heart, surrounded with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, try to console me, and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for fifteen minutes, while meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me."
 
“Mary's role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. "This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ's virginal conception up to his death"; it is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion:
Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words: "Woman, behold your son."        -Catechism of the Catholic Church #964

Diocesan News AND BEYOND
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Praised be to God!
The Vatican announced that the Ven. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen will be beatified after the Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved a miracle attributed to his intercession.
The Congregation approved the miracle on July 6. Official beatification dates have not yet been announced.
The MiracleCatholic News Agency reported that the miracle involves the “unexplained recovery of James Fulton Engstrom, a boy born apparently stillborn in September 2010 to Bonnie and Travis Engstrom of the Peoria-area town of Goodfield.
“He showed no signs of life as medical professionals tried to revive him. The child’s mother and father prayed to Archbishop Sheen to heal their son.”
Seven medical experts advising the Vatican Congregation unanimously approved the miracle. The archbishop needs one more approved miracle attributed to his intercession for his canonization.
Sheen’s cause for canonization was postponed for many years due to a legal battle over his burial place.
The remains were recently transferred to the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois (where Sheen also received his priestly ordination), allowing the cause to continue.
Archbishop Sheen was especially recognized for his work in radio and television.From 1930-1950, Sheen hosted The Catholic Hour on NBC night-time radio, which after 20 years, had a weekly listenership of four million viewers.
His show, “Life is Worth Living,” aired on DuMont Television Network (1952-55) and ABC (1955-57), reaching millions of viewers.
His show also won two Emmy Awards for “Most Outstanding Television Personality.”
His competitors for the 1952 award were Lucille Ball, Edward R. Murrow, Arthur Godfrey and Jimmy Durante.
Listen to one of Ven. Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s shows below:
https://youtu.be/tAW2I0pTlsw?list=RDtAW2I0pTlsw

By Elise Harris

​http://www.ewtnnewsonline.com/images/Pope_Francis_Figueridos.jpg

Rome, Italy (EWTN News/CNA) - It was during the thalidomide sleeping pill craze that Sarah Figueiredo became pregnant with her fourth and last child, Anthony.
Developed after the Second World War and found not only to help with sleeplessness but also to alleviate morning sickness for expectant mothers, thalidomide was widely prescribed by doctors across the world to their pregnant patients as a safe drug to use.


Sarah, who was raising her young family in Nairobi at the time, was one of the expectant mothers prescribed the drug.
It wasn’t until 1961 that thalidomide was discovered to cause severe birth defects in babies born to mothers using it. Many of the children were born with a condition called “phocomelia,” which results in shortened, absent or flipper-like limbs. It was taken off the market in 1962.


When the doctors found out that Sarah’s unborn son would be among the children with this disability, they advised her to have an abortion. However, Sarah and her husband,  both devout Catholics,  refused. Sarah believed her son had “a special mission.”


According to her son – now Msgr. Anthony Figueiredo – what his parents told the doctors was that “if God has allowed us to conceive a child, that child will not be wasted. On the contrary, God will have a mission for that child, which they believe very strongly is that I would be a priest.”


Despite his crippled arm, Msgr.  Figueiredo was ordained in 1994 and has vast experience in missionary work and a hefty academic background in theology. He currently  serves as a spiritual director to hundreds of seminarians studying at Rome’s Pontifical North American College, advises cardinals on their writing and speeches, and works closely with the Pope.


He has also met Mother Theresa and was able to work as a personal assistant to St. John Paul II and Benedict XVI for several years.


The priest largely credits his parents and their faith for encouraging his vocation, telling EWTN News that they “never discouraged me from being a priest.”
“With great sacrifice they sent all of us to Catholic schools and now with old age my mother is the happiest woman in the world, one would say, because she has a son who is a priest.”


Sarah, 84, told EWTN News that she and her husband had prayed that one of their three sons would become a priest, and that she knew this prayer would be answered in Tony, as she calls him, because “I dreamt that one day. I had a dream that one of my sons, the last one,” would be ordained. “I (knew) he had mission.”


While there are “a lot of blessings” in having a son who is a priest, one of the biggest came during a trip Sarah made to Rome to visit her son during the June 1-3 Jubilee for Priests.


Msgr. Figueiredo said he had been walking in the Vatican Gardens one day in April when he got a phone call from the Pope himself.


The Pope said that he knew the priest’s mother would be coming to Rome for the Jubilee of Priests, and wanted to meet her. Since he was busy throughout the three-day event, which concluded with a Mass June 3, Francis told Msgr.  Figueiredo that  “I would really like her to come to my home prior to that Mass.”


It was Pope Francis himself, then, who “completely organized everything,” and welcomed both the priest and his mother into his residence at the Vatican’s St. Martha Guesthouse the morning of June 3.


“It was very, very beautiful. He was just like an ordinary parish priest the way he made my mother welcome,” Msgr. Figueiredo said, recalling how Francis spoke about the number of children in their families and the biblical roots of some of their names.


One particularly touching moment for Msgr. Figueiredo was when the Pope told him that he recognized the priest’s mother from a photo he had given him.


“I gave him the photo three years ago,” Msgr. Figueiredo said,  saying it’s  “quite extraordinary that this Pope, who is probably the most photographed man in the world, remembers each person. It’s as if he has them in his heart.”


Pope Francis also administered the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick to Sarah, who has suffered from two strokes in recent years and in 2010 was diagnosed with aggressive, stage 4 breast cancer, but today is cancer-free.


The Pope “took his time, there was no rush, and he was particularly compassionate,” the priest said, noting how when his mother attempted to stand up for the anointing, Francis told her sit down and himself got up.


“I think that’s amazing from a Pope. There’s really no sense of being in authority, he’s really a servant, a servant of the servants of God. We touched that that day in his residence.”


Sarah, who carried the chalice up to the altar during the Mass after their meeting, said to visit the Pope was “a gift from God…I felt very proud that God had chosen me to come to this special occasion.”


After bringing the chalice to the Pope, “he pressed my hand, and he recognized me and he held me tight,” she said, explaining that the experience is something “I will remember all my life and I thank God for that.”


She also thanked her son for helping give her the opportunity to meet the Pope and to receive his blessing. Giving advice to parents who are hoping for a religious vocation among their children, she counselled that “the more you pray the better it is.”


“We need more priests in this world,” she said, noting how she “always prayed” for her son’s vocation. Even at 84, Sarah continues to pray a daily rosary, keeping one under her pillow so that should she wake up during the night, she can pray a decade before going back to sleep.


Msgr. Figueiredo said that to celebrate the Jubilee of Priests alongside his mother “was an enormous sign to me that God is faithful,” especially when someone gives something of their life to him, whether it’s a parent, a child, a type of suffering, or a vocation.


In regards to the “special mission” his mother believed he had, the priest said for him, this mission has entailed showing a special compassion and solidarity with those who suffer.


“I truly believe what St. Paul said: that God’s power is made perfect in weakness,” he said,  voicing his belief that priests “who particularly have a cross can show a certain kind of compassion and mercy to those who are suffering.”


While as a priest “I can preach until the cows come home,” people really start paying attention when they see “that you yourself suffer in your flesh…one immediately connects.”


For Msgr. Figueiredo, this is what Christ did on the Cross: “he suffered on the cross for us, and so when I am going through suffering myself I see that he’s gone there before me and has faith, believing that the Father will bring good even from tragedy.”


“That’s really helped me to stay close to the smell of the sheep, as Pope Francis exhorts us as priests and as every Christian,” he said.



" The Sunday celebration of the Lord's Day and his Eucharist is at the heart of the Church's life. "Sunday is the day on which the paschal mystery is celebrated in light of the apostolic tradition and is to be observed as the foremost holy day of obligation in the universal Church."
"Also to be observed are the day of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Epiphany, the Ascension of Christ, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christi, the feast of Mary the Mother of God, her Immaculate Conception, her Assumption, the feast of Saint Joseph, the feast of the Apostles Saints Peter and Paul, and the feast of All Saints."
Catechism of the Catholic Church #2177

A bit of humor…
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O Immaculate Heart of Mary,
Heavenly beauty and splendor of the Father,
You are the most valued Heavenly treasure.
 
New Eve, immaculate in soul, spirit and body,
Created of the godly seed by the Spirit of God,
You are the spiritual Mother of mankind.
 
Pure Virgin, full of grace then and now,
Your whole being was raised Heavenly in full glory,
To be elevated above all the hosts within the Kingdom of God.
 
O Heavenly Mother, Queen of Heaven and earth,
I recognize the glory of your highest title,
The Immaculate Heart of Mary!
 
Loving Mother, dispenser of endless blessings,
You who continuously intercedes on our behalf,
Please present my need before your loving Son Jesus.(In your own words, make your special request here. Do not just mention a word. Speak to the Immaculate Heart of Mary as you would speak to another person, begging your Heavenly Mother to plea to Jesus on your behalf, that you be granted this special request.)
 
O Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I know that you are now presenting my need before Jesus,
For you have never turned away those in dire need.
 
Mother dearest, I await your favorable answer,
Submitting myself to the Divine will of the Lord,
For all glories are His forever and ever.
​

+JMJ+


SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion


The Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - July 7th, 2019


The First Reading- Isaiah 66:10-14C
Thus says the LORD: Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad because of her, all you who love her; exult, exult with her, all you who were mourning over her! Oh, that you may suck fully of the milk of her comfort, that you may nurse with delight at her abundant breasts! For thus says the LORD: Lo, I will spread prosperity over Jerusalem like a river, and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing torrent. As nurslings, you shall be carried in her arms, and fondled in her lap; as a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; in Jerusalem you shall find your comfort. When you see this, your heart shall rejoice and your bodies flourish like the grass; the LORD's power shall be known to his servants.


Reflection 
The Lord is all goodness, and wants to pour out His goodness on us. Those who believe will find peace and mercy, protection and nourishment in the bosom of the Church, the Mother Zion we celebrate in this week’s beautiful First Reading.


Adults - How does this Old Testament reading point to the Church? If you’re stumped, try checking the footnotes of your Bible!
Teens - How does the Church bring goodness and love into the world today?
Kids - Who do you know that does a great job of showing other people the love of Jesus?


Responsorial- Psalm 66: 1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
Shout joyfully to God, all the earth,
sing praise to the glory of his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God, "How tremendous are your deeds!"
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
"Let all on earth worship and sing praise to you,
sing praise to your name!"
Come and see the works of God,
his tremendous deeds among the children of Adam.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.
He has changed the sea into dry land;
through the river they passed on foot;
therefore let us rejoice in him.
He rules by his might forever.
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy. 
Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
Blessed be God who refused me not
my prayer or his kindness!
R. Let all the earth cry out to God with joy.


Reflection 
-In this week’s Psalm we sing of God’s “tremendous deeds among men” throughout salvation history. But of all the works of God, none has been greater than what He has wrought by the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Read or sing a Psalm of praise this week.


The Second Reading- Galatians 6: 14-18
Brothers and sisters: May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither does circumcision mean anything, nor does uncircumcision, but only a new creation. Peace and mercy be to all who follow this rule and to the Israel of God. From now on, let no one make troubles for me; for I bear the marks of Jesus on my body. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.


Reflection
The Old Testament and the miracles in it, all point to Christ. Even changing the sea into dry land was but an anticipation and preparation for our passing over, for what Paul calls the “new creation.”
Is there something you can fast from this week, and offer it up in prayer? Did you know that Catholics are still instructed to make every Friday a day of fasting or penance in some way?




The Holy Gospel according to Luke 10:1-12, 17-20
At that time the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way. Into whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this household.' If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, 'The kingdom of God is at hand for you.' Whatever town you enter and they do not receive you, go out into the streets and say, 'The dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that we shake off against you.' Yet know this: the kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom on that day than for that town." The seventy-two returned rejoicing, and said, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name." Jesus said, "I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky. Behold, I have given you the power to 'tread upon serpents' and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven."


Reflection
Jesus has a vision in this week’s Gospel—Satan falling like lightning from the sky, the enemy vanquished by the missionary preaching of His Church. Sent out by Jesus to begin gathering the nations into the harvest of divine judgment (see Isaiah 27:12–13; Joel 4:13), the 70 are a sign of the continuing mission of the Church. Carrying out the work of the 70, the Church proclaims the coming of God’s kingdom, offers His blessings of peace and mercy to every household on earth—“every town and place He intended to visit.” And as the exodus generation was protected in a wilderness of serpents and scorpions (see Deuteronomy 8:15), He has given His Church power now over “the full force of the Enemy.” Nothing will harm us as we make our way through the wilderness of this world, awaiting the Master of the harvest, awaiting the day when all on earth will shout joyfully to the Lord, sing praise to the glory of His name.


Adults - Meditate on what it means to be a missionary disciple for you, in your life. Where is your mission field? Your home? Your workplace? Among those you see on your way to work every day? The person you encounter at a restaurant? 
Teens - Do you watch for opportunities to share your faith? Do you know how to share when the time comes?
Kids - Do you have a friend that encourages you to love Jesus more? Do you encourage your friends in their faith?


Apostolate calls for generous self-surrender which leads to detachment: therefore, Peter, following our Lord's commandment, when the beggar at the Beautiful Gate asked him for alms (Acts 3:2-3), said, "I have no silver or gold" (ibid. 3:6), "not so as to glory in his poverty", St Ambrose points out, "but to obey the Lord's command: it is as if he were saying, 'You see in me a disciple of Christ, and you ask me for gold? He gave us something much more valuable than gold, the power to act in his name. I do not have what Christ did not give me, but I do have what he did give me: In the name of Jesus Christ, arise and walk' (cf. Acts 3:6)." (Expositio Evangelii sec. Lucam, in loc.). Apostolate, therefore, demands detachment from material things and it also requires us to be always available, for there is an urgency about apostolic work.

Jesus’ Sacred Heart, which has so loved men

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Catholic Term


Sacred Heart (from Latin sacr-, sacer; “sacred” + from Latin cord-, cor “heart”)
- the physical Heart of Christ which also symbolizes the unfathomable love Jesus has for the Father and all humanity
[The physical Heart of Christ as the principal sign and symbol of the threefold love with which he loves his eternal Father and all mankind.  It is, therefore, a symbol of the divine love he shares with the Father and the Holy Spirit but that he, the Word made flesh, alone manifests through a weak and perishable body, since "in Him dwells the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Colossians 2:9). It is, besides, the symbol of that burning love which, infused into his soul, enriches the human will of Christ and enlightens and governs its acts by the most perfect knowledge derived both from the beatific vision and that which is directly infused. And finally it is the symbol also of sensible love, since the body of Christ possesses full powers of feeling and perception, in fact more so than any other human body (Pope Pius XII, Haurietis Aquas, II, 55-57).]
 ​

PEORIA, Illinois - The remains of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen have been removed from St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York and are on their way to central Illinois.
The move comes after three years of litigation that ended with a court ruling Sheen’s niece could bury him in Peoria, where he was ordained 100 years ago. She believes that will improve his chances at sainthood.
Bishop Daniel Jenky of the Catholic Diocese of Peoria said Thursday that Sheen’s remains were disinterred from a basement crypt at the Manhattan church where they have been since his 1979 death.
“Early this morning, June 27, 2019, Joan Sheen Cunningham, niece of Venerable Archbishop Sheen, and Patricia Gibson, Chancellor and Attorney for the Diocese of Peoria, along with funeral home and cemetery personnel, gathered at St. Patrick Cathedral in New York. The remains of Sheen were disinterred from the basement crypt under the main altar at St. Patrick Cathedral. Sheen’s remains were immediately taken to LaGuardia airport and flown to O’Hare airport to be transported to the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria,” the diocese said in a statement.
“The remains will be encased into a marble monument inside the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria,” it continued.
Jenky says the process to have Sheen declared a saint has resumed.
“The Congregation of the Causes of Saints in Rome will present the alleged miracle to Pope Francis for his decree authenticating the miracle attributed to Sheen’s intercession. This alleged miracle involved the miraculous healing of a newborn infant who was without vital signs for over sixty minutes,” the statement said.

​This undated photo provided by the Palace of the Governors shows Sister Blandina Segale, who co-founded the first hospitals and schools in New Mexico and reportedly challenged Billy the Kid. The Archdiocese of Santa Fe is exploring sainthood for the Italian-born nun for her work with the poor, immigrants and Hispanics and Native Americans during the frontier days. (AP Photo/Palace of the Governors)


       
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The Archdiocese of Santa Fe announced Wednesday it is exploring sainthood for an Italian-born nun who challenged Billy the Kid, calmed angry mobs and helped open New Mexico territory hospitals and schools.
 
Archbishop Michael Sheehan said he has received permission from the Vatican to open the "Sainthood Cause" for Sister Blandina Segale, an educator and social worker who worked in Ohio, Colorado and New Mexico.
 
It's the first time in New Mexico's 400-year history with the Roman Catholic Church that a decree opening the cause of beatification and canonization has been declared, church officials said.
 
"There are other holy people who have worked here," said Allen Sanchez, president and CEO for CHI St. Joseph's Children in Albuquerque, a social service agency Segale founded. "But this would be a saint (who) started institutions in New Mexico that are still in operation."
 
Segale, a nun with the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati, came to Trinidad, Colorado, in 1877 to teach poor children and was later transferred to Santa Fe, where she co-founded public and Catholic schools. During her time in New Mexico, she worked with the poor, the sick and immigrants. She also advocated on behalf of Hispanics and Native Americans who were losing their land to swindlers.
 
Her encounters with Old West outlaws later became the stuff of legend and were the subject of an episode of the CBS series "Death Valley Days." The episode, called "The Fastest Nun in the West," focused on her efforts to save a man from a lynch mob.
 
But her encounters with Billy the Kid remain among her most popular and well-known Western frontier adventures.
 
According to one story, she received a tip that The Kid was coming to her town to scalp the four doctors who had refused to treat his friend's gunshot wound. Segale nursed the friend to health, and when Billy came to Trinidad, Colorado, to thank her, she asked him to abandon his violent plan. He agreed.
 
Another story says The Kid and his gang attempted to rob a covered wagon traveling on the frontier. But when the famous outlaw looked inside, he saw Segale.
 
"He just tipped his hat," said Sheehan, the archbishop. "And left."
 
Many of the tales she wrote in letters to her sister later became the book, "At the End of the Santa Fe Trail."
 
"She was just amazing," said Victoria Marie Forde of the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati. "It's tough to live up to her example."
 
Segale found St. Joseph's Hospital in Albuquerque before returning to Cincinnati in 1897 to start Santa Maria Institute, which served recent immigrants.
 
Her work resonates today, with poverty, immigration and child care still high-profile issues, Sanchez said.
 
Officials say it could take years — possibly a century — before Segale becomes a saint. The Vatican has to investigate her work and monitor for any related "miracles."
 
Those miracles could come in the form of healings, assistance to recent Central American immigrant children detained at the U.S. border or some other unexplained occurrences after devotees pray to her, Sanchez said.
 
"She's going to have to keep working," Sanchez said. "She's not done."

A bit of humor…

What are you going to do?


I used to be indecisive. Now I'm not sure.   
I like work. It fascinates me. I sit and look at it for hours.


Why does someone believe you when you say there are four billion stars, but check when you say the paint is wet?
The sole purpose of a child's middle name, is so he can tell when he's really in trouble.



There was a very gracious lady who was mailing an old family Bible to her brother in another part of the country.  "Is there anything breakable in here?" asked the postal clerk.  "Only the Ten Commandments." answered the lady.
==================================================================
"Somebody has said there are only two kinds of people in the world.
There are those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good morning, Lord," and there are those who wake up in the morning and say, "Good Lord, it's morning."
==================================================================
A minister parked his car in a no-parking zone in a large city because he was short of time and couldn't find a space with a meter.  Then he put a note under the windshield wiper that read: "I have circled the block 10 times.  If I don't park here, I'll miss my appointment.  Forgive us our trespasses." When he returned, he found a citation from a police officer along with this note "I've circled this block for 10 years.  If I don't give you a ticket I'll lose my job.  Lead us not into temptation."
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While driving in Pennsylvania , a family caught up to an Amish carriage.  The owner of the carriage obviously had a sense of humor, because attached to the back of the carriage was a hand printed sign...
"Energy efficient vehicle: Runs on oats and grass.  Caution: Do not step in exhaust."
 ​

+JMJ+
SUNDAY MASS READINGS AND QUESTIONS
for Self-Reflection, Couples or Family Discussion


The First Reading- 1 Kings 19:16B; 19-21
The LORD said to Elijah: "You shall anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah, as prophet to succeed you." Elijah set out and came upon Elisha, son of Shaphat, as he was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen; he was following the twelfth. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him. Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, "Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye, and I will follow you." Elijah answered, "Go back! Have I done anything to you?" Elisha left him, and taking the yoke of oxen, slaughtered them; he used the plowing equipment for fuel to boil their flesh, and gave it to his people to eat. Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his attendant.
Reflection 
In this week’s First Reading, Elijah’s disciple is allowed to kiss his parents goodbye before setting out to follow the prophet’s call. But we are called to follow one greater than Elijah, this week’s Liturgy wants us to know. In Baptism, we have put on the cloak of Christ, been called to the house of a new Father, been given a new family in the kingdom of God. We have been called to leave behind our past lives and never look back—to follow wherever He leads. Elijah was taken up in a whirlwind and his disciple was given a double portion of his spirit (see 2 Kings 2:9–15). Jesus too, the Gospel will remind us, was “taken up” (see Acts 1:2, 11, 22), and He gave us His Spirit to live by, to guide us in our journey in His kingdom.
Adults - We are called by Baptism to be missionary disciples. What does that mean in your life?
Teens - How do you live out your faith in day to day interactions?
Kids - How can you show others the love of Jesus?


Responsorial- Psalm 16: 1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11
R.You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, "My Lord are you.
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot."
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence
because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Reflection 
-We hear the voice of the One we follow in this week’s Psalm (see Acts 2:25–32; 13:35–37). He calls us to make His faith our own—to abide in confidence that He will not abandon us, that He will show us “the path to life,” leading us to the fullness of joy in His presence forever. What are some concrete ways you can take refuge in, or seek comfort from the Lord?


The Second Reading- Galatians 5:1, 13-18
Brothers and sisters: For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement, namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. But if you go on biting and devouring one another, beware that you are not consumed by one another. I say, then: live by the Spirit and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh. For the flesh has desires against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you may not do what you want. But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Reflection
This week’s Epistle tells us that the call of Jesus shatters the yoke of every servitude, sets us free from the rituals of the old Law, shows us the Law’s fulfillment in the following of Jesus, in serving one another through love.
What helps you resist temptation?


The Holy Gospel according to Luke 9:51-62
When the days for Jesus' being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him. On the way they entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception there, but they would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. When the disciples James and John saw this they asked, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village. As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head." And to another he said, "Follow me." But he replied, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father." But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God." And another said, "I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say farewell to my family at home." To him Jesus said, "No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God."
Reflection
Jesus’s call sets our hands to a new plow, a new task—to be His messengers, sent ahead to prepare all peoples to meet Him and enter into His Kingdom. Elijah called down fire to consume those who wouldn’t accept God (see 2 Kings 1:1–16). But we have a different Spirit with us. To live by His Spirit is to face opposition and rejection, as the Apostles do in this week’s Gospel. It can feel like an exile, with no lasting city (see Hebrews 13:14), no place in this world to lay our head or call home, but we know that, as the Body of Christ, we are all children of our heavenly Father, and are all family in Christ Jesus.
Adults - How can you carry the message of Jesus out into the world? 
Teens - Do you make time for silence in your prayer life, to listen to God speak to you?
Kids - Say a special prayer for the whole Universal Church this week!
"If we only realized how reasonable God's demands are, and how every demand he makes on us is for our own benefit and not his, we would be a little more generous in our. response to his calls. He does not need us—we need him. We could slip in a few more short prayers during the day: we could find more time to take a true interest in the eternal and less in the temporal. We could manage to give a helping hand and a word of encouragement to a needy neighbor. Yes, all of us could do a lot more to show to Christ and to the world that we are following him gladly and honestly. We are not looking back while plowing our Christian furrow." -Excepted from The Sunday Readings, Fr. Kevin O'Sullivan, O.F.M.

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Catholic Websites of the Week

Eucharistic Miracles

http://www.therealpresence.org/eucharst/mir/a3.html
 
Having trouble believing that Jesus is fully Present: Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity in the Holy Eucharist?  You are not alone.  When someone has doubted, often a Priest, God has often sent a miracle where the Consecrated Host turns into human Flesh or Blood.  Check out this site for more!
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If not, here’s how:
St. Padre Pio prayed the Efficacious Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus every day for the intentions of those who requested his prayers. St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the saint most well-known for spreading devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, wrote this prayer.
The faithful pray this novena nine days before the feast of the Sacred Heart. This year, the Church prays the novena every day from June 19-27. This year’s feast of the Sacred Heart is on Sat., June 28, 2019.
However, the novena may be prayed at any time throughout the year.
Efficacious Novena to the Sacred Heart of JesusI. O my Jesus, you have said: “Truly I say to you, ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you.” Behold I knock, I seek and ask for the grace of… (name your request)
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory Be to the Father…
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in you!
II. O my Jesus, you have said: “Truly I say to you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.” Behold, in your name, I ask the Father for the grace of… (name your request)
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory Be To the Father…
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in you!
III. O my Jesus, you have said: “Truly I say to you, heaven and earth will pass away but my words will not pass away.” Encouraged by your infallible words I now ask for the grace of… (name your request)
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory Be to the Father…
Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in you!
O Sacred Heart of Jesus, 
for whom it is impossible not to have compassion on the afflicted, 
have pity on us miserable sinners and grant us the grace which we ask of you, 
through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, 
your tender Mother and ours.
Hail, Holy Queen…
St. Joseph, foster father of Jesus, pray for us!

Their beliefs were rooted in Jesus' words and the traditions passed down to them from the Apostles.After almost 2,000 years of Catholic teaching, the Church boldly proclaims in the Catechism, “The Eucharist is ‘the source and summit of the Christian life.’ ‘The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it'” (CCC 1324).
​
It is a striking statement, one that shows how much the Church values the Eucharist in the present age. Yet, is this belief something new, introduced during the last few centuries? Or has it been part of the Church’s teachings since the very beginning?

As with all essential teachings of the Catholic Church, it is simply a reechoing of the Church’s beliefs throughout the centuries. This is clearly revealed when delving into the writings of the early Christians who lived in the first few centuries after Christ’s death and resurrection.
To help illustrate that point, here is a small selection of quotes from these Christians that detail their beliefs about the Holy Eucharist. After reading these, it becomes clear how the Church has passed on this teaching over the years virtually unchanged.
On the Lord’s own day, assemble in common to break bread and offer thanks; but first confess your sins, so that your sacrifice may be pure. However, no one quarreling with his brother may join your meeting until they are reconciled; your sacrifice must not be defiled. For here we have the saying of the Lord: “In every place and time offer me a pure sacrifice; for I am a mighty King, says the Lord; and my name spreads terror among the nations.” (Didache, c. 90)
For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but as Jesus Christ our Savior being incarnate by God’s Word took flesh and blood for our salvation, so also we have been taught that the food consecrated by the Word of prayer which comes from him, from which our flesh and blood are nourished by transformation, is the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus. (St. Justin Martyr, c. 100)
They [Gnostics] abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not admit that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, the flesh which suffered for our sins and which the Father, in His graciousness, raised from the dead. (St. Ignatius of Antioch, c. 110)
[Christ] has declared the cup, a part of creation, to be his own Blood, from which he causes our blood to flow; and the bread, a part of creation, he has established as his own Body, from which he gives increase to our bodies. (St. Irenaeus of Lyons, c. 140)
The Word is everything to a child: both Father and Mother, both Instructor and Nurse. “Eat My Flesh,” He says, “and drink My Blood.” The Lord supplies us with these intimate nutrients. He delivers over His Flesh, and pours out His Blood; and nothing is lacking for the growth of His children. O incredible mystery! (St. Clement of Alexandria, c. 150)

Vatican City, Jun 10 / 11:13 am (EWTN News/CNA) - During his weekly general audience, Pope Francis lauded families for the “hidden heroism” of caring for a sick loved one.

“These are the heroes. This is heroism of the family!” the pontiff said during his Jun. 6 catechesis.

The Pope spoke of men and women who come to work, sleep-deprived after having cared for a sick family member.

“This hidden heroism is done with tenderness and with courage when someone is sick at home,” he said.

The Pope's address, delivered Wednesday to pilgrims in Saint Peter's Square, was the latest in a series of catechesis dedicated to the family. Since late year, the pontiff has been centering his Wednesday addresses on this theme as part of the lead-up to the World Day of Families in September, as well as October’s Synod of Bishops on the Family.

Pope Francis focused his latest address on the particular sufferings experienced when a family member falls ill.

“It is an experience of our fragility which we live mostly in the family, from children, and above all the elderly,” he said.

He added that because of the love we feel for family members and loved ones, we feel their sufferings even more.

This is particularly the case when parents suffer from the illness of a son or daughter, he said.

In many parts of the world, families do not have ready access to hospitals, the pontiff noted. In these cases, the family becomes the “closest hospital,” in that caring for the sick person falls to the parents, grandparents, and siblings.

Pope Francis observed how, in general, families grow in times of sickness. For this reason, he stressed the importance of teaching children from a young age with a sense of solidarity during such times.

“We must educate children to solidarity with the sick so that they are not anesthetized to the sufferings of others, but rather are capable of helping the ill and of living fully each human experience,” the Pope said.

Throughout his catechesis, the Holy Father recounted several scenes from the Gospel in which Jesus heals the sick.

“(Jesus) publicly demonstrates himself as one who fights against illness, and who has come to heal man of every evil: The evil of the spirit and the evil of the body,” he said.

Pope Francis recalled a scene from the Gospel of Mark in which the people brought sick and possessed people to Jesus.

Recalling how the doctors of the law reproved Jesus for healing on the Sabbath, the Pope said: “But the love of Jesus was to give health, and do good.”

The pontiff cited particularly the scene of the man born blind, and the debate over whether he had been deprived of sight because of his sins or his parents' sins. “The Lord clearly said: neither him nor his parents; and thus he manifested in him the work of God, and healed him.”

This is God's glory, and the Church's task, the Pope said: “to always help, console, to lift up, and be close to the sick.”

Pope Francis also emphasized the Church's invitation to continuously pray for those “struck by disease.”

“And we must pray more, be it personally or in community.”

Pope Francis said that the Christian community knows that the family, in times of sickness, is never alone.

“We must thank the Lord for the beautiful experiences of fraternity in the Church which help families through difficult moments of pain and suffering,” he said.

“This Christian closeness, from family to family, is a real treasure for the parish: a treasure of wisdom, which helps families during difficult times and makes them better understand the Kingdom of God.”

“These are God's caresses,” he said. 
 
Holy Communion augments our union with Christ. The principal fruit of receiving the Eucharist in Holy Communion is an intimate union with Christ Jesus. Indeed, the Lord said: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him." Life in Christ has its foundation in the Eucharistic banquet: "As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me." 
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On the feasts of the Lord, when the faithful receive the Body of the Son, they proclaim to one another the Good News that the first fruits of life have been given, as when the angel said to Mary Magdalene, "Christ is risen!" Now too are life and resurrection conferred on whoever receives Christ. -Catechism of the Catholic Church #1391

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John Chapter Six
(Remember it is JESUS who speaks here)
1 
After this, Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee (of Tiberias). 
2 
A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. 
3 
Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. 
4 
The Jewish feast of Passover was near. 
5 
When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?" 
6 
He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. 
7 
Philip answered him, "Two hundred days' wages  worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little (bit)." 
8 
One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, 
9 
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves  and two fish; but what good are these for so many?" 
10 
Jesus said, "Have the people recline." Now there was a great deal of grass  in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. 
11 
Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. 
12 
When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, "Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted." 
13 
So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets  with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. 
14 
When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, "This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world." 
15 
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone. 
16 
When it was evening, his disciples went down to the sea, 
17 
embarked in a boat, and went across the sea to Capernaum. It had already grown dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 
18 
The sea was stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 
19 
When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea  and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. 
20 
But he said to them, "It is I.  Do not be afraid." 
21 
They wanted to take him into the boat, but the boat immediately arrived at the shore to which they were heading. 
22 
The next day, the crowd that remained across the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not gone along with his disciples in the boat, but only his disciples had left. 
23 
Other boats came from Tiberias near the place where they had eaten the bread when the Lord gave thanks. 
24 
When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 
25 
And when they found him across the sea they said to him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?" 
26 
Jesus answered them and said, "Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled. 
27 
Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal." 
28 
So they said to him, "What can we do to accomplish the works of God?" 
29 
Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent." 
30 
So they said to him, "What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do? 
31 
Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'" 
32 
So Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 
33 
For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 
34 
So they said to him, "Sir, give us this bread always." 
35 
Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst. 
36 
But I told you that although you have seen (me), you do not believe. 
37 
Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and I will not reject anyone who comes to me, 
38 
because I came down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. 
39 
And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it (on) the last day. 
40 
For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him (on) the last day." 
41 
The Jews murmured about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven," 
42 
and they said, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? Do we not know his father and mother? Then how can he say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" 
43 
Jesus answered and said to them, "Stop murmuring among yourselves. 
44 
No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. 
45 
It is written in the prophets: 'They shall all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. 
46 
Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 
47 
Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 
48 
I am the bread of life. 
49 
Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; 
50 
this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. 
51 
I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." 
52 
The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us (his) flesh to eat?" 
53 
Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. 
54 
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. 
55 
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 
56 
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. 
57 
Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. 
58 
This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever." 
59 
These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 
60 
Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" 
61 
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, "Does this shock you? 
62 
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 
63 
It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 
64 
But there are some of you who do not believe." Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. 
65 
And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father." 
66 
As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. [perhaps the saddest line in Sacred Scripture]
67 
Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?" 
68 
Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 
69 
We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God." 
70 
Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you twelve? Yet is not one of you a devil?" 
71 
He was referring to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot; it was he who would betray him, one of the Twelve. 

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