Read:     Sir 48: 1-14      Mt 6: 7-15

DAILY PRAYER

“In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”  (Mt 6:7-8)

Some of us pray almost automatically, letting the words slide off our tongues. Praying the Rosary while driving, checking the watch, email, WhatsApp, etc. Soon we’ll be able to pray and watch “As the World Turns” at the same time.

“Praying” mechanically — saying the words as though we were automatons — while our interest and imagination wander far away is not prayer. 

True prayer calls for external and internal silence.

External Silence is achieved when we find a peaceful place, far from the distractions and noise of modern living. We need external silence so that we can focus our attention on God.

Internal Silence is achieved when we can quiet our worries and reduce the static of our imagination so that we can concentrate on our relationship with God exclusively. 

When reading “Christian Prayer: The Liturgy of the Hours” we need to focus on the Psalms and consume what we read.  The same when Bible reading.  If you see you have advanced a paragraph or two, and there you find you cannot interpret what you have read, STOP, go back.  Reread.

Get away at least once a week, for at least half an hour, to a silent and solitary place of prayer. You will find that you will genuinely benefit from your prayer. Quality is greater than quantity.

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 88:8 “Your wrath lies heavy upon me; all your waves crash over me.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

St. Romuald, Abbot Read:    2 Kgs 2: 1, 6-14        Mt 6: 1-6, 16-18

DAILY PRAYER

“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father… Do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them…”  (Mt 6:1-5)

Much of our giving is too easily denigrated into acts of self-adoration, social presumption, and haughtiness rather than opportunities to give alms, charitable works, sacrificial giving, and occasions to serve.  Rather than desiring to use our goods to serve our neighbor and to praise  Almighty God, we use our money and things to gain and build up our narcissistic selves.

Jesus used the symbol of the cross to invite us to love.  Each time we join the Lord and give up ourselves and our goods, we revisit the Passion of our Lord and join in His sufferings. 

To place ourselves at the center of attention and as a vehicle for our glorification seems to me to be almost diabolic.

So many people of seeming good will give “with strings (cables) attached.” They want their memorial plaque, applause, recognition, “thank yous”, reports, etc.  And to many, no sign of gratitude is enough. Yet Jesus says: “When you give, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing.” (Mt 6:3)

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 22:24-25 “You who fear the LORD, give praise!  For God has not spurned or disdained the misery of this poor wretch.” 

St. Romuald, d. 1027; Founder of the Camaldolese order.  He spent 30 years traversing Italy, founding and reforming monasteries and hermitages.

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

DAILY PRAYER

“Love your enemies, pray for your persecutors.  This will prove that you are the sons of your heavenly Father, for his sun rises on the bad and the good, he rains on the just and the unjust.”  (Mt 5:44-45)

Jesus did not come to offer humanity a guarantee of worldly satisfaction, health, and wealth.

God made man with a perfect balance of desires — human and divine.  But the rebellious sin and moral disorder hampered our will and resolve to follow God’s designs.

Now, to aspire to eternal life, we must exercise great influence over our disordered will to choose the correct path that leads us to God (following His divine plan).

Knowledge of God’s Will can be found in a careful reflection on the Scriptures and the teachings of our Holy Mother, the Church.

This process of conversion to Christ’s plan is not painless.  Obedience and submission to the teachings of Christ and His Church are always costly — but the rewards are greater than the initial costs.  The happiness and satisfaction that comes from obedience to God’s Holy Will is lasting and fulfilling.

The price of an eternal life of happiness is to be paid for through our sacrificial living, moral order, and a renunciation of a disordered worldly ambition.

“Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”  (Mt 16:25)

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 18:27 “The lowly people you save but haughty eyes you bring low; you indeed, O LORD, give light to my lamp, you brighten the darkness about me.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

Read:   1 Kgs 21: 1-16          Mt 5: 38-42

DAILY PRAYER

“If anyone wants to go to law over your shirt, hand him your coat as well.  Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him two miles.  Give to the man who begs from you.  Do not turn your back on the borrower.”   (Mt 5:40-42)

In Matthew’s gospel, chapters 5 through 8, Jesus gives us a new call to adjust our attitude and perform some major sacrifices.  He thereby made a threshold by which we must pass to be truly Christian. 

We would not feel the disadvantages of being a Christian and living the Gospel if we were willing to cooperate with the will of God.  If we could see things the way that God sees them and understand justice the way that God asks us to understand it — our attitude would be completely different.

The Christian life reminds us that the teachings of Jesus oblige us to lessen our ego and will (not an easy call by any stretch of the imagination) to the will of another (the person in need), and most importantly: to the divine will of God. 

“If a man wishes to come after me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in my footsteps.”   (Mt 16:24)

“Enter through the narrow gate.  The gate that leads to damnation is wide and the road is clear, and many choose to travel it.  But how narrow is the gate that leads to life, how rough the road, and how few there are who find it!”  (Mt 7:13-14)

We have to want eternal life to have sufficient courage to sacrifice our natural advantages to guard our true faithfulness to the love of Jesus.

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 40:8 “To do your will, O my God, is my delight.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

DAILY PRAYER

“This being so, we make it our aim to please him whether we are with him or away from him.  The lives of all of us are to be revealed before the tribunal of Christ so that each one may receive his recompense, good or bad, according to his life.”  (2 Cor 5:9-10)

Many of us fear being reminded of our mistakes or bad acts.  Yet we love it when others remind us of the good things we have accomplished.

We would have nothing to fear, or be ashamed of, if we could answer truthfully to someone’s accusation: “I did not do it.”

Our actions, words, and thoughts count.  The meaning of our life is about collaborating with the Lord, doing his will and collaborating with the Lord, and helping others go there as well – winning souls for Christ.

Whatever it takes for us to get there, whatever sacrifice we must make, and whatever thing we must cease doing to put our lives in accord with the Will and plan of almighty God is worth it (our “heavenly reward”).

We must be careful of what we do, guarding our consciences, for we know that there are repercussions for our decisions and actions – for good or bad. These repercussions will follow us on into eternal life.

“Any man who gives you a drink of water because you belong to Christ will not, I assure you, go without his reward.”  (Mk 9:41)

“I assure you, on judgment day, people will be held accountable for every unguarded word they speak.  By your words you will be acquitted, and by your words, you will be condemned.”   (Mt 12:36-37; also see: Heb 9:27 and Lk 12:35,40)

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 75:8 “God is judge; one he brings low; another he lifts.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

Read:     1 Kgs 19: 19-21      Mt 5: 33-37

DAILY PRAYER

“Again you have heard that it was said to your ancestors, ‘Do not take a false oath, but make good to the Lord all that you vow.’ But I say to you, do not swear at all… Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one.”  (Mt 5:33-37)

Many of us justify engaging in  “fibs” and “spin” because we abhor the idea of offending by stating the truth.    

“The truth”  is steadily becoming less meaningful.  Our leaders and the press boldly tell lies, while “movements” and others fudge the facts, and manipulate the reports.  And the line between truth and falsehood becomes more blurred.

Manipulation and messaging are key in control of the public.

What does it mean to tell the truth?  What does it mean to take a vow?

“This is what the LORD has commanded: When a man makes a vow to the LORD or binds himself under oath to a pledge… he shall not violate his word, but must fulfill exactly the promise he has uttered.”  (Nm 30:2-3)

“You shall not swear falsely by my name, thus profaning the name of your God. I am the LORD.”  (Lev 19:12)

Why are we so ready to lie, cheat, and break our word?  Being a Christian requires honesty. God requires of us a high standard of integrity. When we lie, cheat, or go back on our word, not only are we sinning, but we are failing in our obligation to be witnesses for Christ.  

The Light is found in the truth.

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 24:3-4 “Who may go up the mountain of the LORD?… The clean who are not devoted to idols, who have not sworn falsely.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

DAILY PRAYER

“‘Whenever a man divorces his wife, he must give her a decree of divorce.’  What I say to you is: everyone who divorces his wife… forces her to commit adultery.  The man who marries a divorced woman likewise commits adultery.” (Mt 5:31-32)

The holiness that God expects from the family is clearly stated in the Ten Commandments.  God gave us three commandments that deal with our relationship with Him, and three commandments dealing with the family: (1) The Fourth Commandment: “Honor your Father and your Mother.” Parents are also exhorted to act in such a way as to elicit honor and love from their children.  (2)  The Sixth Commandment: “You shall not commit adultery.”  (3)  The Ninth Commandment:  “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.

There remain but four additional commandments that regulate the rest of human relations. This should help us understand the dignity and importance that God has placed on the honest and holy relationship between husband and wife, and parents and children —on the family.

It could not be any other way.  It is in the heart of the Christian family that we grow to appreciate the fundamental relationship we have with God.  Children cannot understand the true love of God if they are not shown that love by their parents.

It is not enough to be simply a good provider. God wants us to commit ourselves to a genuine love in our family relations based on Jesus. 

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 50:16 “To the wicked God says: ‘Why do you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth.’” 

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

St. Anthony of Padua Read:    1 Kgs 18: 41-46      Mt 5: 20-26

DAILY PRAYER

“If you bring your gift to the altar and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift at the altar, go first to be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”  (Mt 5:23-24)

The Pharisees emphasized pious practice to manifest sanctity.  However this did not filter into their interior lives, and much less, in the lives of those affected by their ideas.

Our internal love for God is shown through good and holy works. True love obliges us to reconcile with our neighbor before we try to grow closer to the Lord.

If it occurs to us that we can act piously while hating neighbor through word and deed (misunderstandings, anger, resentments, bitterness, etc.), we fool no one, much less God Himself.  Reconciliation must take place between the parties affected before we approach our God.

Emotions are powerful and they happen without us ever asking for them or wanting them (unfair treatment, pride, anger, etc).  But, we do not have to follow them, and we actually must work to master our reactions to feeling, and channel those reactions in effective and in healthy ways.  

Our ability to reason distinguishes us from the animals and makes us superior — regardless of our emotions.

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 37:30 “The mouth of the just man tells of wisdom and his tongue utters what is right.   The law of his God is in his heart.”

St. Anthony of Padua, d. 1231; from Lisbon; O.F.M.; devoted student of scripture; first friar to teach theology to his fellow friars; gifted orator and preacher; known as the “Evangelical Doctor.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

Read:   1 Kgs 18: 20-39         Mt 5: 17-19

DAILY PRAYER

“Whoever breaks the least significant of these commands and teaches others to do so shall be called least in the kingdom of God.  Whoever fulfills and teaches these commands shall be great in the kingdom of God.”(Mt 5:19)

Jesus teaches us the proper manner to understand the revelations from God the Father throughout history.  Leaders had interpreted the Law in a way to solidify their power, prestige, and wealth.  Jesus’  way is to clarify the law of love on the heart to comprehend, revise, and discern His Holy Will for His people.

“You have heard the commandment… but what I say to you is…” (Mt 5-8)

Jesus’ call makes clear the ties between His teachings and the Law of Moses.  He also insists on the need to live those teachings in a relationship with God.

“In times past, God spoke in fragmentary and varied ways to our fathers through the prophets; in this, the final age, he has spoken to us through his Son whom he has made heir of all things and through whom he first created the universe.  This Son is the reflection of the Father’s being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.”  (Heb 1:1-3) 

The true sense of being a Christian lies in the enthusiastic preaching of the teachings of Jesus and in putting them into practice. 

“Do not rejoice so much in the fact that the devils are subject to you as that your names are inscribed in heaven.” (Lk 10:20)

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 119:111 “Your decrees are my inheritance forever; the joy of my heart they are.”

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES

St. Barnabas, Apostle Read:    Acts 11: 21-26; 13: 1-3        Mt 5: 13-16

DAILY PRAYER

“You are the salt of the earth.  But what if salt goes flat?  How can you restore its flavor?  Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” (Mt 5:13)

If salt becomes contaminated or spoiled by something, it is good for nothing.

Believers are the salt of the earth.  We are called to change the world, to bring others to Christ, to show others what it means to be in love with God and to be His disciple.

We protect our place as the ones who give new meaning to the “flavor” of life by “avoiding the near occasion of sin,” by steering clear of what might rob us of our faith—our weaknesses and temptations.  This needs to be done in a spirit of humility and confidence, guarding against overconfidence in our ability to “combat sin.”  The sure way to fall into the same old sinful action (be it habit or addiction) is to think that “I’ve got it licked.”  Once the salt is spoiled, nothing can restore its flavor.

To renew our fervor, we can serve, love, give, and sacrifice.  We must strive to be ever fervent, ever new, remaining “on fire” with the love of Jesus Christ.  We are called to be sharp and a fresh “salt” that will make an effect on the flavor of things.  This can be accomplished by constant prayer, a commitment to renovate our faith, and attentiveness to the Lord and His holy will.

Reflection and commentary

Psalm 119:36 “Incline my heart to your decree; let evil not dominate me.”

St. Barnabas, d. 1st. c; preached the gospel in Antioch; companion of Paul; attended the Council of Jerusalem; martyred on, and is patron of the island of his birth, Cyprus; mentioned in the first Eucharistic prayer.

OUR PRAYER CONTINUES