Death is but a passage to life, to the real life where all of us are destined to reach.

Today we pray for all of those who have gone ahead of us in death,

that through God’s mercy they will receive the reward of eternal life with him.

We pray for ourselves too that when our time comes, we will share in the same reward. 

 

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9

The souls of the just are in the hands of God

 Today, the Church honors Saints Simon and Jude, Simon was called “the Zealot.”Simon is not Simon Peter, the Prince of the Apostles,

but rather “Simon the Cananean” and “Simon the Zealot”. As a zealot,

Simon would have been very committed to his Jewish identity and would have been firmly opposed to Roman oppression and taxation.

Jude is referred to as “Judas, not the Iscariot…”

Jude was the patron saint of hopeless cases. He was a brother of St. James the Lesser, and a relative of Jesus.

During the Last Supper, asked Jesus, “Master, what happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”

Saint Jude the Apostle which he warns all Christians against immorality and heresy trying to enter the early Church.

They bore the sacred responsibility of transmitting the Sacraments and the teachings of Jesus to a nascent Church.

Simon is traditionally believed to have been sawed in half, Jude have been beaten with a club. 

 

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Ephesians 2:19-22

Now, you are no longer strangers or guests,

 They are the ones who have been washed by the blood of the Lamb, those who have remained faithful under trial,

who, like Christ, have offered their lives for truth, justice, charity, and peace.

Each of us challenges us to desire to become Saints, for only by being Saints can we be counted amongst the Saved!

 

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14

I saw another angel,

We are living in a kind of world that was unimaginable a few decades ago,

thanks to the radical and lightning-fast developments in science and technology.

when it comes to discerning matters of the spirit,

we live in denial of the existence of God or live as if our earthly life would go on forever,

failing to store up treasures in heaven. Jesus calls for better discernment today.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Romans 7:18-25a

I know

God and His kingdom often follow the dynamics of the mustard seed and the yeast in today’s gospel parables:

small, subtle, almost invisible; but they keep transforming the world around.

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel”

“I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊ 

Romans 8:18-25

I consider that the suffering of

Today we hear a Gospel that may strike us as quite disturbing.

Jesus says that he did not come to bring peace but division!

Christ is the Prince of Peace! He came to reconcile us to the Father

But the peace of Christ is founded on the acceptance of Jesus and his teachings.

the believer cannot allow human affiliations,

even family relationships,to take precedence over relationship with Christ and the Gospel.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Romans 6:19-23

You see that

An old woman as bent-over, She is bent-over double, crippled and unable to stand up straight or look people in the eye.

Yet Jesus sees her and decides to free her from her affliction. On the day she least expects, God visits her and heals her.

No Sabbath could stop the goodness of God pouring on His people. 

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Romans 8:12-17

30TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 

Then, brothers,

 

 
The Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.

But Jesus has never left us either!

“Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of time”.

We must strengthen our faith. Always remember to put God at the center of what we all do.

The Church being the spouse of Christ must live up to Christ’s standard.

This applies not only in the affective realm but in every area of intervention;

and this applies not only to the clergy, but every Christian. For, each of us has received grace upon grace.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

 Romans 6:12-18

Do not allow sin

 The first 3 commandments of the Decalogue contain the law to love God and

the other 7 are commandments that ensure the proper love of neighbor.

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul,

and with all your might.” Loving God is linked inextricably to loving other people.

All the rules in the Law flow from the ideas of loving God and loving others.

Placing God right at the center of our lives practicing fraternity,

Love alone can triumph over the power of death.

 

＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Exodus 22:20-26

You shall not wrong

Those who did not receive Jesus as the Messiah,

They have not readied themselves for such an event.

“Have we welcomed Christ as God’s Sin-bearer and our Savior?

Have we received His free gift of salvation?

we want to be dressed and ready for His second coming.

 

St. Anthony Mary Claret, bishop

 ＊＊＊ 1st Reading ＊＊＊  

Romans 5:12, 15b, 17-19, 20b-21

Therefore, sin entered the world