August 3 through August 9, 2025
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(August 3, 2025: Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time)
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“What profit comes to a person from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which one labored under the sun?” “One may be wealthy, but one's possessions do not guarantee one life.”
Is wealth an obstacle to living a righteous life? Do possessions prevent us from living a righteous life? Must we choose between the things that are of earth and the things that are of heaven?
Indeed, riches may be a temptation to forsake a God-centered life precisely because they may distract us from pursuing the things that really matter in life - the things that will last forever. However, the root of the problem may not be the wealth - the possessions - the success - themselves, but rather, inordinate anxiety and concern about them.
Anxiety about the accumulation and preservation of wealth ultimately prevents us from truly enjoying our blessings and successes in life. As today's Scriptures point out, anxiety about holding on to how much (or even, how little) we possess can lead to tragic consequences.
Francis de Sales wrote in his Introduction to the Devout Life:
“There is a difference between possessing poison and being poisoned. Pharmacists keep almost every kind of poison in stock for use on various occasions, yet they are not themselves poisoned because it is merely in their shops, not in their bodies. So, too, you can possess riches without being poisoned by them if you keep them in your home, purse or wallet, but not in your heart.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 14)
The man in the Gospel parable is not condemned because he had filled his barn with riches. No, he is condemned because he had allowed his heart to be consumed by riches. So consumed, in fact, that when he was considering how to dispose of his excessive good fortune, it never occurred to him that he might share it with others.
A word to the wealthy...and the wise: the best remedy for not being consumed with riches is to practice the virtue of generosity. After all, how can you be anxious about losing what you have if you are already too busy sharing it with - even giving it away to - others?
Therein lies the secret of true wealth...in the eyes of God, wealth that truly - and forever - enriches. What makes me rich is not a measure of what I possess. No, what makes me rich is what I am willing to share with othe
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(August 4, 2025: John Vianney, Priest)
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“The children of Israel lamented…”
The children of Israel were complaining – one might say even whining. Never mind that God (through the leadership of Moses) had liberated them from the Egyptians. The heady days of their new-found freedom had vanished, and the Israelites complained about the manna they were reduced eating in the desert. They longed for the good food that they had once enjoyed back in the good old days at the hands of the not-so-good Egyptians. Faced with such ingratitude, Moses, in turn, did his own share of complaining and whining to God about the complaining and whining Israelites.
Francis de Sales wrote in his Introduction to the Devout Life:
"Complain as little as possible about the difficulties you suffer. Complaining people commit a sin by doing so, since self-love always feels that the troubles they experience are worse than they actually are. The truly patient person neither complains of his hard lot nor desires to be pitied by others…If some just occasion requires a complaint to either correct an offense or to restore peace of mind, do not do so with irascible or fault-finding people. Instead of calming your mind the others will stir up worse difficulties and in place of pulling out the thorn that is hurting you they will simply drive it deeper into your foot. If you must complain, do it only with those who are even-tempered and who really love God." (IDL, Part III, Chapter 3, p. 130)
One can understand the Israelites’ frustration - they had been wandering in the desert a lot longer than anyone had expected. The conditions there were challenging (hot in daytime and cold at night) and the food was dreadful. However, the complaining not only solved nothing, but in fact, it simply made things worse.
Before you complain about something today, ask yourself these questions:
· Is the difficulty that I am experiencing really as bad as I feel it is?
· Will my complaint change things for the better or for the worse?
· If my complaint is justified, will I complain to the right – or to the wrong – kinds of people?
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(August 5, 2025: Tuesday, Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time)
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“Take courage, do not be afraid…”
In a letter to St. Jane de Chantal, Francis de Sales wrote:
“The Scriptures tell us that St. Peter, seeing that the storm was raging, grew afraid; and as soon as he was afraid he began to sink and drown, so he cried out: ‘O Lord, save me!’ And our Lord caught hold of his hand and said to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ Look at this holy apostle; he walks dry foot on the water, the waves and the winds could not make him sink, but fear of the wind and the waves will make him perish unless his master saves him. Fear is a greater evil than the evil itself.”(Stopp, Selected Letters, page 125, p. 198)
His advice to Saint Jane de Chantal is also great advice for us. He recommended:
“Do not be afraid. You are walking on the sea, surrounded by wind and water, but you are with Jesus: so what is there to fear? If terror seizes you, cry out loudly: O Lord, save me. He will stretch forth his hand towards you; clasp it tight and go joyfully on your way. In short, don’t philosophize about your trouble; don’t argue with it, just go straight on, quite simply. If the whole world is topsy-turvy – if all around is darkness and smoke and din – God is still with us.” (Ibid)
In there anything in particular that is weighing heavily on your mind or heart? Are there any issues or concerns that are attempting to paralyze you? Is there anything about which you find yourself afraid?
Remember: God is with you! Take his hand, clasp it tight and go joyfully on your way, as bravely as you can!
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(August 6, 2025: Transfiguration of the Lord)
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“He was transfigured before them…”
Something remarkable happened on that mountain.
Consider the possibility that it was not Jesus who changed, but rather, it was Peter, James and John who were transformed. Imagine that this account from Mark’s Gospel documents the experience of Peter, James and John as if their eyes were opened and their vision widened, enabling them to see without impediment the virtually blinding light of Jesus’ love that flowed from every fiber of his being.
Indeed, every day of Jesus’ life something of that remarkable brilliance, that remarkable passion, and that remarkable glory was revealed to people of all ages, stages and states of life. The shepherds and magi saw it; the elders in the temple saw it; the guests at a wedding saw it; a woman caught in adultery saw it; a boy possessed by demons saw it; a man born blind saw it; a good thief saw it.
If so many others could recognize it in a word, a glance, or a touch, why might Peter, James and John have required such extra effort in helping them to see Jesus’ glory? Perhaps it was because they were so close to Jesus; perhaps it was because they were with him every day; perhaps it was because, on some level, they had somehow taken his glory for granted.
What about us? Do we recognize that same divine glory present in us, present in others, present in creation, present in even the simplest and most ordinary, everyday experiences of justice, truth, healing, forgiveness, reconciliation and compassion?
Or do we take it for granted?
St. Francis de Sales saw the Transfiguration as a “glimpse of heaven.” How might our eyes, our minds and our hearts need to be transfigured and transformed in ways that enable us to catch this “glimpse of heaven” within us and around us? How might we need to see more clearly the glory of a God who always loves, redeems, heals, forgives, challenges, pursues., strengthens and inspires us?
Today, may we grow in our ability - through the quality of our lives - to make that “glimpse of heaven” more clearly visible and available to the eyes – and in the lives – of others.
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(August 7, 2025: Sixtus II, Pope and Companions, Martyrs)
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“Get thee behind me, Satan.”
Wow, how that must have stung! The command “Get behind me, Satan,” spoken to Peter by Jesus, is recorded in Matthew 16:23 and Mark 8:33. “Get behind me, Satan” seems harsh and out of character for Jesus, especially when addressing Peter, one of His most devout disciples. Why did Jesus say this? What was it Peter did to deserve such a rebuke? Without knowing it, Peter was speaking for Satan.
Jesus had just revealed to His disciples for the first time the plan: He was to go to Jerusalem to suffer, die, and be raised to life. Contrary to their expectations of Him, Jesus explained that He had not come to establish an earthly Messianic kingdom at that time. The disciples were not prepared for this new revelation of the Messiah’s purpose. Though Peter understood Jesus’ words, apparently, he simply could not reconcile his view of the conquering Messiah with the suffering and death Jesus of which Jesus spoke. So, Peter “began to rebuke Him” for having such a fatalistic mindset.
Peter might in fact have been “a Rock” on which Jesus would subsequently rely heavily, but at this moment, Peter was – however unwittingly – serving as a tool for the Tempter. Like Jesus’ adversary, Peter was not setting his mind on the things of God—His ways, His plans, and His purposes. Instead, his mind was set on the things of man, the things of the world and its earthly values. Jesus was saying that the way of the cross was God’s will, the plan of redemption for all the human family. Peter’s reaction was most likely shared by the other disciples although - as always - it was Peter who first gave voice to it. Peter was inadvertently being used by Satan in thinking he was protecting Jesus. Recall, Satan had purposely tempted Jesus in the wilderness to the run-up to His public ministry: Satan attempted to divert Jesus from the cross, from fulfilling the grand design of the Father and the Son. Without realizing it, Peter was doing the same thing. He had not yet grasped the counterintuitive truth of Jesus’ Messianic purpose.
Although Peter had just moments before declared Jesus as the Christ, seconds later he turned from God’s perspective and viewed the situation from a solely human perspective, which brought about the stern rebuke: “Get behind me, Satan!” Jesus went on to explain: “You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men”.
At the time, Jesus’ stern reprimand did not make sense to Peter. However, Jesus’ indictment presents a profound message for us. We can easily see that Peter had the wrong perspective of God’s plan for Christ’s suffering and death. But we must also see how easily we can become an unwitting tool for Satan. This is especially true when we lose sight of God’s plan for us. This comes about when our focus is on our careers, our possessions, our security and our advantage rather than upon sacrifice and service and the proclaiming of God’s message. When Peter’s focus shifted to his own desires and plans, Jesus’ rebuke was a wake-up call for him. Jesus shocked Peter with the aim of getting him back on track. Perhaps we can learn from St. Peter to avoid the temptation ourselves to view life in a way contrary to the power and promise of true discipleship.
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(August 8, 2025: Dominic, Priest and Founder)
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“I remember the deeds of the Lord.”
Today we celebrate the life and legacy of St. Dominic, the founder of the Order of Preachers (popularly known as The Dominicans).
“Dominic sought to revive religious devotion among Catholics and bring the Cathar heretics (who taught that the physical world was evil) back to the fold. He emphasized preaching effectively and knowledgeably to ensure success in converting nonbelievers…Although the Dominicans succeeded in bringing many Cathars back to the Catholic faith, some lords and bishops felt the missionary effort was taking too long. They launched a war that, by the end of the thirteenth century, had nearly wiped out the Cathars.” (This Saint’s for You! p. 46)
Francis de Sales has more than a little bit to say on the topic of preaching. In an extended letter to Andre Fremyot (brother of Jane de Chantal), Archbishop of Bourges, Francis de Sales wrote:
“Say marvelous things, but if you do not say them well, they are nothing. Say only a little but say it well, and it is very much. How must we speak when we preach? We must be on guard against the haughtiness and long periodic sentences of the pedants, against their gestures, their airs and their movements. All such things are the plague of preaching. Preaching must be spontaneous, dignified, courageous, natural, sturdy, devout, serious and a little slow. But to make it such what must be done? In a word, it means to speak with affection and devotion, with simplicity and candor, and with confidence, and to be convinced of the doctrine we teach and of what we persuade. The supreme art is to have no art. Our words must be set aflame, not by shouts and unrestrained gestures, but by inward affection. They must issue from our heart rather than from our mouth. We must speak well, but heart speaks to heart, while the tongue speaks only to the ear.” (Preacher and Preaching, pp. 63 – 64) pp. 198-199)
To remember with affection and devotion the deeds of the Lord is not enough. As in the case of Dominic, how might our remembering be translated to speaking of the Lord’s deeds, not only in word, but in deed?
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(August 9, 2025: Edith Stein, a.k.a. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross)
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“ I love you, Lord, my strength.”
Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross - Virgin and Martyr – was born Edith Stein in 1891 in Breslau, Poland. She was the youngest child of a large Jewish family. An outstanding student and well versed in philosophy with a particular interest in phenomenology, she became interested in the Catholic Faith, and in 1922, she was baptized at the Cathedral Church in Cologne, Germany. Eleven years later Edith entered the Cologne Carmel. Because of the ramifications of politics in Nazi Germany, Edith, whose name in religion was Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, was sent to the Carmel at Echt, Holland. With the outbreak of World War II, the Nazis invaded and subsequently occupied Holland. Life in the Lowlands under National Socialism was particularly brutal, especially for Jews. Following the Dutch episcopacy's public condemnation of Nazi racism in 1942, Teresa – along with her sister Rose, also a member of the Carmel – was arrested. She and her sister were transported east to the concentration camp at Auschwitz where Edith died in the gas chambers at the age of fifty-one. (http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=179)
In a conference to the Visitation Sisters on “Hope,” Francis de Sales counseled:
“If divine Providence does not permit afflictions or mortifications to come upon you, then do not desire them or ask for them. On the other hand, if divine Providence permits afflictions or mortifications to come upon you, you must not refuse them but accept them courageously, lovingly and calmly.” (Conference VI, P. 95)
When Edith Stein converted to Catholicism in the 1920’s, she wasn’t looking for trouble. When she joined the Carmelites in the 1930’s, she wasn’t looking for trouble. When National Socialism gained power in Germany in 1933 and began to menace some of the subgroups within its borders – especially Jews – Teresa Benedicta wasn’t looking for trouble. In fact, she and her sister transferred to a monastery in another country with the hope of staying clear of any controversies. But, on that fateful day in 1942, when trouble finally caught up with her in the form of men in SS uniforms, she accepted it “courageously, lovingly and calmly” in imitation of her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on the night of his arrest and subsequent crucifixion.
Edith’s belief in God’s love for her gave her the strength to face the ultimate sacrifice: giving her life for the love of God and neighbor. How does our belief in God’s love for us measure up to hers?
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