November 10, 2012

Memorial of Saint Leo the Great, pope and doctor of the Church

(Reigned 440-61).

Place and date of birth unknown; died 10 November, 461. Leo's pontificate, next to that of St. Gregory I, is the most significant and important in Christian antiquity. At a time when the Church was experiencing the greatest obstacles to her progress in consequence of the hastening disintegration of the Western Empire, while the Orient was profoundly agitated over dogmatic controversies, this great pope, with far-seeing sagacity and powerful hand, guided the destiny of the Roman and Universal Church....Read more.

Lectionary: 490

First Reading from St. Paul's letter to the Philippians

Phil 4:10-19

Brothers and sisters:
I rejoice greatly in the Lord
that now at last you revived your concern for me.

>>>Brethren, I felt as though I had been abandoned.  But now, I thank God that you have shown your love for me.

You were, of course, concerned about me but lacked an opportunity.
Not that I say this because of need,
for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself,
to be self-sufficient.

>>>Of course, now I realize that you simply did not have the opportunity to show your love for me.  But I will tell you a lesson, I have learned to be self-sufficient in every circumstance.

I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances;
I know also how to live with abundance.

>>>I know how to live do without and how to react in times of plenty.

In every circumstance and in all things
I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry,
of living in abundance and of being in need.

>>>In all situations, I have learned the key of being satisfied whether well fed or hungry.

I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
Still, it was kind of you to share in my distress.

>>>My strength is from Our Lord.  Still, I appreciate your generosity.

You Philippians indeed know that at the beginning of the Gospel,
when I left Macedonia,
not a single church shared with me
in an account of giving and receiving, except you alone.

>>>You, from Philippi, know that you have shared your blessings with me when no one else would.

For even when I was at Thessalonica
you sent me something for my needs,
not only once but more than once.

>>>Even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me supplies, many times.

It is not that I am eager for the gift;
rather, I am eager for the profit that accrues to your account.
I have received full payment and I abound.

>>>It is not that I'm eager to receive anything from you.  But I'm eager for you to receive that which will accrue to you as a result of your generosity.  I have received full payment from God and it is so much.

I am very well supplied because of what I received from you
through Epaphroditus,
"a fragrant aroma," an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God.

>>>And what I received from you has filled my supplies.  This your gift through Epaphroditus will issue a fragrant aroma before God, an acceptable sacrifice pleasing to Him.

My God will fully supply whatever you need,
in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

>>>In turn, my God will fully supply whatever you need in resprect to the Grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 112:1b-2, 5-6, 8a And 9

R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.

or:

R. Alleluia.

Blessed the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commands.
His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth;
the upright generation shall be blessed.

R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.

or:

R. Alleluia.

Well for the man who is gracious and lends,
who conducts his affairs with justice;
He shall never be moved;
the just one shall be in everlasting remembrance.

R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.

or:

R. Alleluia.

His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear.
Lavishly he gives to the poor;
his generosity shall endure forever;
his horn shall be exalted in glory.

R. Blessed the man who fears the Lord.

or:

R. Alleluia.

>>>The righteous man who obeys the Lord's commands will receive compensation from the Lord in the hereafter:

Revelation 22:12-13

King James Version (KJV)

¹² And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
¹³ I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke

Lk 16:9-15

Jesus said to his disciples:
"I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth,
so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.

>>>Dishonest wealth-that is what we have.  Our very life is from God.  It is not our own.

Eternal dwellings-that is the Kingdom of Heaven.  

This saying is a confirmation of the advocacy of the Saints in heaven.  They will be sitting on thrones judging the world.  And if you have made friends with them, they will allow you into heaven:

1 Corinthians 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?  3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?  4 If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.

The person who is trustworthy in very small matters
is also trustworthy in great ones;
and the person who is dishonest in very small matters
is also dishonest in great ones.
If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,
who will trust you with true wealth?

>>>This is so profound, its hard to know where to start.  Whether we realize it or not, we are all hard wired to judge in this way.  We trust those who have proven themselves trustworthy.  We distrust those who have proved themselves not to be trustworthy.

Dishonest wealth is, again, everything we have.  Nothing is our own.  Not even our lives.  If we act unrighteously with God's wealth, why would we expect Him to bring us into eternal dwellings?  

Romans 2:1-7
1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.  2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.  3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?  4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?  5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;  6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:  7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another,
who will give you what is yours?

>>>Say that a person is entrusted with another's money, such as a banker frequently is.  If that banker does not act righteously with that money, can he expect to be paid?  Of course not.

In the same way, we are entrusted with the good things of life.  God expects us to use them to do good to our neighbor.  But if we use that which He gives us selfishly, can we expect to be rewarded with eternal life?

No servant can serve two masters.
He will either hate one and love the other,
or be devoted to one and despise the other.
You cannot serve God and mammon."

>>>We can't serve both God and the Devil.  We can't serve both God and our flesh.  But if we love God, everything will fall into place.

The Pharisees, who loved money,
heard all these things and sneered at him.

>>>The Pharisees, however, loved money and did not believe Him.

And he said to them,
"You justify yourselves in the sight of others,
but God knows your hearts;
for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God."

>>>And Jesus said to them, you make yourself look good before men.  But that which men esteem is an abomination to God.

1 Corinthians 1:20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

Sincerely,

De Maria