#Gospel Sharing Saturday

[lopez-richter-fangirl]

The Tin Can Bros have launched a kickstarter to celebrate their 10 year anniversary with SEVEN new projects, and they need our help!

Read on to find out how:

This is Brian Rosenthal, Corey Lubowich and Joey Richter

You may know them from Team Starkid, or you may know them from their own group the Tin Can Brothers (creators of projects such as Spies Are Forever and the Solve it Squad), formed in 2014. To celebrate 10 years, they’re raising a goal of $200k in order to stage seven projects

They’re currently a week into their campaign and have raised almost $50k with 675 backers. But they still have a way to go! And to help, we need to spread the word

TINLIGHTENMENT PROMO SCHEDULE:

Saturday 10th - The Great Debate

What is it?

A live comedy game show featuring Joey, Brian, Corey and special guests pitted against each other to win a debate. It gets silly!

How will I be able to see it?

Live shows in LA (and potentially other places!) throughout the year, digital tickets, and eventually some ‘episodes’ on youtube!

What can I share?

If you’ve been lucky enough to see past great debates on Patreon, talk about favourite topics and moments!

If you haven’t, share moments and clips from the first public great debate livestream happening on Thursday! (I think - if plans are changed then they’re doing a terrible job letting me help them)

Talk about guests! They talked about a Dropout crossover which I know people have been asking for with Starkid. I don’t know what that is but tell the people that do!

Tuesday 13th - Gross Prophets

What is it?

A brand new comedy musical featuring Joey, Brian and Lauren with music by Ali Gordon and Angela Parrish (shitty broadway! https://youtu.be/AZ-bOPiDqo8?si=F6guq3Pk_lOkCB5B)

How will I be able to see it?

Live shows (some workshop-y) in LA leading up to a run at the Adelaide Fringe, with digital tickets and eventual youtube release

What can I share?

We don’t know a whole lot about this project yet, but we do know it’s got a great cast and creative team - talk about those people!

That it’s going to Adelaide!! Australia is frequently in the top backing countries on kickstarters, and those people finally get a chance to see a TCB show live!

Theories on what the show might involve!

Saturday 17th - SIS at the Fringe

What is it?

An Edinburgh Fringe run of the fucked up Scooby Doo parody, with the original cast!

How will I be able to see it?

Live shows throughout the entire Edinburgh Fringe run in August, or a digital ticket!

What can I share?

This is an existing TCB property, so talk about what you love from the original! Share art, gifs, edits, anything!

That it’s going to Edinburgh! As above, UK fans have been desperate for this for ages, now’s our chance! Make sure people know about it!

Tuesday 20th - Spy Another Day LA and London

What is it?

A live concert screening (Hollywood Bowl meets Rocky Horror!) of Spies with most of the original cast for LA and TCB plus Lauren for London!

How will I be able to see it?

A live show in LA in Spring (likely April) with a digital ticket option, and a live show in London in early September following their SIS fringe run

What can I share?

Like with SIS, anything and everything you love about the original show! Angsty fics, art, memes, it’s all good

Joe Walker. To me personally he’s just A Guy, but some people are still shocked to be learning he’s doing a show again! Get those OG fans to support this!

That it’s going to London. I need Joey doing a passable to decent depending on how much he’s practiced English accent in London! And again, an opportunity for one of the highest backing cities to see them LIVE

Saturday 24th - TCBoB at 54 Below

What is it?

The songs from their musical This Could Be on Broadway in concert at 54 Below in New York City, with Joey, Brian, Lauren, Esther, Bryce and Clark, plus more performers to be announced!

How will I be able to see it?

Live in NYC in November, with a digital ticket option

What can I share?

The first workshop only got a digital ticket release but if you caught that, share favourite parts! And the soundtrack is available, so talk about how fucking good the songs are

The fact that it’s an opportunity for people to hear these songs live!

Tuesday 27th - Intelligent Life

What is it?

A reading of TCB’s queer sci-fi comedy TV pilot

How will I be able to see it?

Live in LA in early Summer, or by digital ticket

What can I share?

Like with Gross Prophets, this is a brand new (to us) project so we don’t know a lot! But we do know it’s gays in space! We love space gays

Remember, these are just ideas. Share anything you personally are excited for and think other people might be interested in! The aim is to make sure people are aware of these projects, what they entail and why they need to happen! Any other way you have of getting the word out about the projects and the campaign in general is valuable!!

Join our discord for more ways to help or to ask questions! https://discord.gg/4VNEBzpA

And if you’re hearing about all this for the first time, check out the campaign! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/tincanbros/tinlightenment-world-tour

[sallymareeq]

Under the Willow Tree

⚠️18+ [Minors DNI]⚠️

Summary:

"He moved a hand to your face, caressing your smooth cheek, and in that moment the world disappeared." A picnic under the willow tree with your "best friend" Todd. sappy lovey romantic poetic smut ok this will def become a series

Notes:

reader can be any race and weight as long as they are not bald :) comments are highly appreciated

It had been a year since the Welton Henley Hall merge and you had been living on the new west wing of the ‘strictly girls’ boarding houses for a while. Through classes you had finally made friends with boys you found respectable. You had your little group, Neil, Knox, Poppy, Charlie, Meeks and Pitts, Cameron, you and Todd.

You and Poppy had been the first to join Mr Keatings english class and she, being the extrovert she is, immediately connected with the horniest boy in the room, Dalton. Through being dragged along on awkward dates you did get to know Charlie and thankfully also his wingman Neil. Through Neil and Charlie you were introduced to the rest of the poets.

You began forming a connection with all of them, helping Neil rehearse for his plays because you loved to watch him act, working on a radio with Meeks and Pitts, going on walks with Knox to pick flowers, and getting study tips from Cameron.

But the time you cherished the most was the time you spent reading and writing and talking with Todd. Todd, like you, had a shy exterior, you had to be introduced by friends and at first your conversations were awkward and stilted, punctuated by furtive glances and blushed cheeks but eventually you just clicked. Todd soon became your best friend and you each saw a side of each other no one else had.

Late afternoons you would read Whitman under a willow tree in a hidden patch of the forest, sometimes Todd would get up and start dancing and laughing as he read, grabbing you by the hands to spin you around until you both tumbled over. One of Todd's favorite activities though was listening to you sing. Once he found out you could, he spent a week begging you to sing him something, even a little, until you finally agreed, under the condition that you got to play with his smooth, dirty blonde hair.

You had always wondered what it felt like, it always looked so soft and clean. So one warm Saturday afternoon, sitting on a blanket under the willow, Todd slowly lay his head in your skirt as you began to sing. An old gospel song you had learnt in sunday school, years ago,

As I went down in the river to pray Studying about that good old way And who shall wear the robe and crown Good Lord, show me the way.

Todds eyelashes fluttered shut as you ran your fingers back through his hair, reveling in its softness,

O brothers let's go down Let's go down, come on down Come on brothers let's go down Down in the river to pray

A soft smile crossed his rosy lips and you began to notice the light dusting of freckles against his alabaster skin.

As I went down in the river to pray Studying about that good old way And who shall wear the starry crown Good Lord, show me the way.

You stopped singing as Todd sat up, twisting so you faces were inches apart, his hair was messy, his lips slightly parted and his blue eyes were clouded with love. His hands were either side of you against the tree in an almost protective position and in a slow, dream-like trance you raised your hand to feel his cheek with your thumb. His skin was soft and warm and connecting to it like this stirred something inside you. He continued to breathe, staring longingly into your eyes as you moved your fingers across to his lips, so soft and inviting, his warm breath brushing your fingers. He moved a hand to your face, caressing your smooth cheek, and in that moment the world disappeared. You saw, as if from a bird's-eye view, two young lovers under a willow tree, body’s so close they shared the same air. A boy with his blue sweater, unbuttoned collar peeking out the top and khaki pants. A girl, her hair tied with a bow, wearing the boy's oversized cable knit sweater and a small skirt. You watched for a moment, admiring how perfect they looked together until you heard, or rather felt your name whispered against your lips.

‘Y/N’ the poet breathed ‘can i’ he glanced down at your rosy lips ‘may i kiss you?’

Your lips met fully as you fell into his warmth, he tasted like sunset and home. You lifted your chin as he pulled you in, gently placing a hand on the small of your back, pressing you as close as possible. You arched into him as you deepened the kiss longing to feel more of him, your hands moving from his warm chest to his soft hair. It felt like flying, kissing Todd Anderson, so gentle and yet so firm, so sweet and so lustful, a dance in perfect time. You broke the kiss, only to catch your breath and Todd rested his forehead against yours breathing, his now glossy lips revealing a row of perfect white teeth.

‘Wow’ he sighed

‘Wow’ you looked into his adoring eyes.

And as Todd opened his mouth to speak again a sudden need rushed through your body and you kissed him passionately. He was taken aback for a moment but quickly tightened his grip on your waist, holding your body's flush, together you rose to your knees as you leaned back into his hands. Todd kissed you hungrily, in a way you couldn't expect from him, and as your tongues met you felt yourself grow increasingly aroused at the closeness.

Todd slowly began kissing down your jaw to your neck eliciting soft moans as you began to tug at the hem of his sweater. He leaned back and removed it with a cat-like grin that you had never seen before but that made you want him more than possible. You lifted your arms as he removed your (well his) sweater and began feverishly unbuttoning your tight, white tshirt. His long fingers made quick work of your shirt as he pushed it down your shoulders, still kissing you hotly. He leaned back, hands on your waist, to admire your flawless skin. He ran a light hand over your collar bone as you melted to his touch, his hand traveled down your side, carefully avoiding your breast, to your stomach where he rubbed his thumb over the skin. He looked up at you through his long lashes then down at your low cut, blue floral bra, and more importantly your soft round breasts.

He glanced up again questioningly,

‘Please Todd’ you whispered ‘Touch me’

That confirmation was all he needed to cup his large hand around one of your breasts, kneading it softly and groaning at the feeling. He moved his head down toward them and glanced up a final time before his wet mouth connected with the skin covering your sternum. Slowly he traveled down your cleavage before moving to your left breast leaving small love bites in his wake. You hummed in pleasure as he pulled away the fabric, his hot breath hitting your exposed nipple. He sucked it into his mouth, tongue circling the sensitive skin causing you to whine breathily. Once he was satisfied with the left he moved on to the right still groping the left as he did. Once he had you leaning back on your arms, squirming and moaning his name he pulled away, you whined at the loss of connection until you saw him begin to unbutton his white shirt. You sat up staring longingly as more of his pale, lightly freckled chest was revealed, his muscles were taught and clearly visible, he looked as if he was carved from stone and as he shrugged off his shirt you felt your mouth begin to water. You sat up fully, holding him by the shoulders, cheeks touching as you breathed in his scent, distinctly masculine, like freshly washed sheets or a newly opened book, it filled your chest and stomach and back as you shut your eyes and basked in it. You moved together, not kissing, but breathing, feeling the pull of each other's energy.

You ran your hands down his freckled shoulders observing the rise and fall of his muscles, down his forearms covered in light blonde hairs, to his hands, silky and veined. You brought his hand to your mouth kissing the pads of his fingers and slowly inviting his pointer and middle into your mouth, you licked and sucked sensuously as he stared at the lustful sight. Drawing back, you licked saliva from your lips and continued your exploration. As you began kissing down his chest, feeling his warm skin you caught a glimpse of his bulge, straining against the front of his pants. He lowered himself onto his elbows as you savoured the feeling of his abs on your lips, you felt his hand brush through your hair to your cheek as he lifted your face and looked lovingly into your eyes.

‘hey, you know you don't have to do anything you don't want to right?’ Todd said earnestly

“Little you know” you began to quote as you sensually crawled up his body, ‘the subtle electric fire for your sake playing within me.’ you finished with a soft kiss to his lips.

‘Whitman’ He smiled

‘i fear i am in love’ you mused

‘And i quite the same’ he whispered hot against your lips ‘O to draw you to me, O to be yielded to you, coming naked to me at night,'

'And you to be yielded to me, in defiance of the world’ he spoke as if kissing, moving and breathing and teasing.

‘Your body to me is sweet, clean, loving, strong,’ you spoke kissing his jaw

‘Your eyes are more to me than poems,’ you began traveling back down his neck

‘Your lips do better than play music,’ down his hot chest

‘The lines of your cheeks, the lashes of your eyes, are eloquent to me,’ over the hills and valleys of his toned abdomen

‘This face is flavor’d fruit ready for eating.’ you unbuttoned his trousers

‘You give me the pleasure of your eyes, face, flesh,’ unzipping them slowly

‘You take of my hair, breast, hands, in return,’ kissing his hip bones

‘Our flesh, and even a part of our flesh,’you lock eyes with the sandy haired poet, light eyes now dark with lust,

‘seems more than senses and life.’ he finishes for you as you remove his trousers and boxers in one fluid motion, freeing his throbbing member.

Todd sucked in a breath, cock twitching at the sudden cold as it sprung from his boxers. You stared in awe at his glistening member, already dripping with precum, it was large, more than 6 inches, and erect. You looked up at him unsure.

‘I have never done this before’

‘Its ok’ Todd assured ‘I'll tell you what feels good and what doesn't’

And you trusted him to do so.

You leaned forward, taking the tip into your mouth as you tasted him, warm and slightly salty, but knowing it was Todds made it taste like lust. You lowered, taking as much into your mouth as you could, Todd hummed with pleasure and let out a low moan when you felt the tip hit the back of your throat.

‘Mm yes, perfect’

His praise swallowed you whole as you began acting on instinct, taking what couldn’t fit into your mouth in hand, you began to bob your head up and down, slowly hitting the back of your throat every time. Your mouth filled with saliva and precum, dripping out onto your chin. Todd lovingly used his free arm to hold back your hair as you worked. His head fell back as he continued to groan and whisper your name like a prayer. You felt him guide your head faster and you swirled your tongue slightly causing his hips to buck. This involuntary show of desire caused you to moan around his cock, sending vibration through his body, his lips came together to stifle a moan and he whispered breathlessly.

‘Fuck Y/N im getting close, should i-’

But his words were cut off by a long, drawn out ‘fuck-’ as you took his entire length into your hot, wet mouth. He gripped your hair tightly and you felt his cock twitch as hot salty liquid shot down your throat, you swallowed as much as you could, longing to be filled with his love, and as you pulled back, come and spit dripping from your chin to your breasts, he stared, open mouthed.

‘If I am to have so much, let me have more, Drunken and crazy with love, swing in its plummetless sea.’ he recited

You bashfully wiped your mouth as you sat back on your heels.

‘Oh my- that was perfect’ Todd spoke

His eyes scanned your body

‘i have never bared witness to something so breathtakingly beautiful’ he started, holding you with a loving gentleness, ‘so sweet, so lovely’ he smiled as he began to lay you down,’so kind and fulfilling’ he removed your skirt exposing your matching floral panties, now soaked, ‘and sensual’ he mouthed at your navel, ‘something i want’ he breathed pressing a kiss to your hip bone, ‘something i need’ kissing the other, he moved to face your hot core, leaving wet kisses up your thighs ‘bid away matters of the mind, and think only with your heart’ Your head falls back, mouth open wide as you arch into the feeling of Todd's wet tongue running over your panties, but before you can moan out his name he captures your lips in a wet, sensuous kiss, the friction of his tongue being replaced by his long, capable fingers. He hooks his fingers under the waist of the garment and looks to you for permission before slowly pulling them down.

‘I have never done this before either’ Todd admitted as he leaned forward to kiss you

‘I trust you Todd’ you felt him grow harder at your words.

With newfound confidence he tentatively swiped two fingers through your folds, stopping when he felt you shudder at contact with your sensitive bundle of nerves. He quickly glanced back up at you,

‘Good or bad?’ he questioned,

‘Good… really good’ you breathed as he began to circle your clit.

You stared lovingly into his face as he slowly widened his circles until he stopped at your entrance,

‘Todd’ you said softly,

‘Hm?’ he looked up at you in that Todd way, mouth slightly open, blue eyes innocently questioning, dirty blond hair parted to one side.

‘Im a virgin’ you breathed against his lips,

The thought had never crossed your mind since you came to Welton, Poppy had always talked about sex and how great Charlie was in bed but you had never met anyone you thought you could trust with your body, so open and vulnerable, until you met Todd. With him everything just felt so right, a perfect boy, a handsome man, a lover.

‘I want you to be the one’ you whispered,

He kissed you softly, much slower than before but something felt different, like he had transferred part of his soul with that kiss and just as slowly and with as much care, he pressed his warm finger into you. You both shut your eyes, enjoying the sensation, he groaned at the feeling of you clenching around his long nimble finger, growing almost unbearably hard. You moaned loudly as he curled his finger hitting a spot that sent a rush through you.

‘Please Todd- Please’ you whined biting your lip

‘Please what petal, please what?’ Todd urged, eager to please

‘Faster’ you panted.

Todd was a fast learner as he soon found a pace that had you heaving for breath and begging for more all at once, he slowed slightly but before you could complain he added a second finger, pumping them into your throbbing core.

You bit your lip as a mix of pain and pleasure rocked through your body

‘Is that o-’ you swallowed Todd's question in a kiss that neither of you could ever forget, hot and wet and sweet, your tongues working in harmony, both of you making obscene noises as you felt the knot in your stomach grow tighter.

‘Todd i need you’

‘Im here, i'm here whatever you need’ he breathed still pumping in and out of you

‘I need all of you please’ you whined needily.

‘Ok’ he removed his fingers from your warmth and smoothed your lust onto his already hardened cock.

Kneeling in front of you he teased your entrance with his tip as you gazed dreamily up at his figure, the gold afternoon sun peaking through the branches left his pale skin gleaming with sweat. He looked down at you, laying sprawled on the blanket, had it been only this morning you considered each other friends, no, you had been much more from the moment your eyes met. Love. love was the only word to describe how you felt as Todd leaned his forehead against yours and slowly, slowly pressed his way inside of you. The world disappeared inch by inch as his length filled you up, you felt no pain this time, only an all-encompassing sense of wholeness. Your thoughts, feelings, memories became one as he slowly began thrusting into you, nuzzling into your soft hair and breathing heavily. It was just the two of you, breathing and moaning as you moved closer toward a shared bliss. You sucked at his neck, nibbling on a spot behind his ear that made him let out an almost whimper. He raised the hand that wasn't supporting him to your neck, not to choke but to feel your pulse. The feeling of his strong, smooth hand at your neck sent you reeling as you whispered his name frantically.

‘yes, Todd, Please, I love you, i love you, fuck, fuck’

With every thrust he lightly kissed your face, your cheeks, nose, eyelids, running his fingers through your hair. This moment was nothing like how Poppy had described it, not hot and dirty and rough and loud and forbidden, it was warm and sweet and kind and lovely and true. A moment of connection between two fated souls, under the shade of a willow tree.

The feeling was beyond words, beyond feeling, it was poetic. The passion in his movements pushed you to the edge of what you knew to be true, staring into his deep blue eyes, you knew you were close, you both knew. His movements slowed, becoming more sloppy as you both teetered on the edge of release. Your lips connected as you felt a wave of pleasure crash over you both, the feeling so great you moaned into each other's mouths. You rode out your orgasms, panting between kisses, Todds face buried in your neck. He rolled onto his back and you snuggled into his warm chest, listening to his heartbeat.

“I would quote whitman but right now i can only think of you” he sighed

You giggled as you passed him his pants.

He redressed clumsily as you gathered your clothes and jumpers.

You sat together talking quietly as he buttoned your shirt and you fixed up his hair.

“You're so good to me Todd” you smiled as he fixed your collar.

‘Well i just love you’ he said so casually he even took himself by surprise,

‘Where ever did I find you’ you shook your head smiling contently.

You lay with your head in his lap this time, reading Whitman while he picked the surrounding wildflowers, as you put the book down Todd blushed, he had made you a flower crown. You sat up and turned so he could place it on your head.

He smiled ‘you look like a woodland nymph’

You picked a small white flower- a spring beauty- and stuck it in his still slightly messy hair.

‘You're so very pretty Todd’

As the sun grew orange in the sky you began making your way back to the courtyard, probably looking like a pair of strays, hair full of flowers and clothes a mess, holding hands and smiling blissfully.

[daily-dose-of-joey-richter]

TCB are in the FINAL DAYS of their tinlightenment world tour kickstarter! 😱 and it’s up to us to get them to their goal of $200k so that they’re fully funded by THIS SATURDAY march 2nd! otherwise, they wont be able to do any of the amazing projects they have planned to celebrate their 10 year anniversary! they NEED to make it to $200k! 🙏🙏🙏

at the time of me writing this, the kickstarter is currently at over $180k and nearly at $181k

here’s your daily dose of joey richter ❤️ please support the kickstarter so it’s fully funded and this wonderful guy here can finally get some well deserved peaceful rest 🙏❤️ ATHEM!

(no but seriously every tin can bro has been doing the absolute MOST throughout this campaign and they more than deserve this!! and thanks to all of you out there who have been supporting the kickstarter, making posts & sharing posts, pledging, etc. y'all are the best i love you & i love this community)

[yermes]

PAC: ❄️ 

Deinfluence your life and practice

I am a hypocrite. Me buying a vintage moomin shirt before I do a reading on deinfluencing magic and living. First of all I am HUGE on buying cute and pretty things because you like cute and pretty things but I think since theres so many cute and pretty things on the pump and dump being made unethical and contributing to waste we may need to think about what, how, and where we buy (IF YOU HAVE THE RESOURCES TO DO SO)

Disclaimer: please take what I say with a grain of salt and not as the gospel. I just want to share some ideas of practicing and giving advice using the medium as often as I can with school, work, and my own personal studies and practice.I was going to record Prometheus Rising today but I am so awfully tired I am going to do it early Saturday morning Instead. Sorry for the delay posting my tumblr was not working! Liking and sharing does a lot 🥰

Socials: TipJar | Follow me!

Pick a meme

1 2 3

The cards

Mice + Bouquet 💐 🐁 

You don’t have to bend over backwards, be nice, or be gracious in every situation. The more you sacrifice your self respect for the betterment of someone else the more that it eats away at you causes more and more stress and makes it harder and harder to be genuinely kinder to yourself. Stop eating the lies that you owe people kindness and understanding especially in relation to YOUR life and YOUR practice.

Coffin + Tower ⚰️ 🏰 

I know boycotting some businesses and establishments can be hard but honestly if they’re not serving you and you can get yourself a better product why not do that? You don’t even have to de glamorize the experience of it either. But you should look at the companies that you support currently and see if they actually suit your needs, wants, and personal morality.

Ring + The Lady 💍 👠

You don’t need big friend groups with empty ass people who serve you nothing. You need friends and relationships who ACTUALLY LOVE AND CARE FOR YOU. If they do not reciprocate your love its time to downsize. Do not let people who don’t care about you make decisions for you or claim importance in your life. This also refers to covens too.

Extras: 🛌

Story/vent:

I am so sleepy.

[frmartinshomiliesandreflections]

31st August >> Fr. Martin's Reflections/Homilies on Today's Mass Readings for Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time (Matthew 25:14-30): ‘To everyone who has will be given more’.

Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Except USA)

Matthew 25:14-30

You have been faithful in small things: come and join in your master's happiness.

Jesus spoke this parable to his disciples: ‘The kingdom of Heaven is like a man on his way abroad who summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third one; each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out. ‘The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. ‘Now a long time after, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made.” ‘His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” ‘Next the man with the two talents came forward. “Sir,” he said “you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have shown you can be faithful in small things, I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” ‘Last came forward the man who had the one talent. “Sir,” said he “I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.” But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have recovered my capital with interest. So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the five talents. For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but from the man who has not, even what he has will be taken away. As for this good-for-nothing servant, throw him out into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 25:14-30

Since you have been faithful in small matters, come, share your master’s joy.

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one– to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the one who received two made another two. But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money. After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.’ His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’”

Reflections (6)

(i) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

What distinguished the third servant in today’s parable from the other two servants was fear, ‘I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground’. Fear disabled him and prevented him from responding to the trust that his master had placed in him by giving him a significant sum of money as a gift. In the gospels, fear is often portrayed as the opposite of faith or trust. In the storm at sea, Jesus asked his disciples, ‘Why are you afraid, you of little faith?’ (Mt 8:26). The first letter of John declares, ‘There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us’ (I John 4:19). God has revealed his perfect love for us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Because we know ourselves to be perfectly loved by God, we can entrust ourselves to God, taking risks on behalf of God, knowing that if we fail God continues to love us. The Lord’s love frees us to live fearlessly and generously. When Peter started walking towards Jesus across the water from the boat, ‘he noticed the strong wind… and became frightened and began to sink’ and Jesus asked him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ (Mt 14:30-31). When we forget how much the Lord loves us and focus instead on what seems threatening, we easily find ourselves sinking out of fear. If, however, we keep looking to Jesus, ‘the pioneer and perfecter of our faith’, then we will fearlessly ‘run the race that is set before us’ (Heb 12:1-2). The Spirit of God’s unconditional love has been poured into our hearts and, as Saint Paul says, ‘you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry out, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God’ (Rom 8:15-16). It is the Spirit who empowers us to use our gifts generously and courageously.

And/Or

(ii) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

When Jesus speaks a parable in which there are several characters, the emphasis often falls on the third and final character to be mentioned, such as the Samaritan in the parable of the good Samaritan and the elder son in the parable of the prodigal son. In the parable of this morning’s gospel reading, the focus again falls on the third character, the servant who took the one talent his master had given him and simply hid it in the ground. His reason for doing this was that he considered his master an overly demanding person and was afraid to take any risk with what he had been given. Rather than risk losing what he had been given, he hid it so as to be able to give it back. The other two servants obviously had a different view of their master; they had the freedom to invest what they had been given. They seemed to have understood that their master would not blame them for trying and failing. The master had given them a gift; he never intended to look for it back; he simply wanted them to make good use of what he had given them. We have all been gifted and graced in different ways by God. God wants us to serve one another out of what we have been given. Fear can sometimes hold us back, as it held back the third servant, fear of God, fear of others, fear of failure. It was Mother Teresa of Calcutta who said that God does not ask to be successful, just to be faithful. Jesus is suggesting through this parable that if we have enough trust in the God who loves us unconditionally we will have the freedom to give from what we have received, without worrying too much about success or failure.

And/Or

(iii) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

When Jesus speaks a parable involving three characters, very often the emphasis falls on the third character. We can think of the parable of the good Samaritan; it is the Samaritan, after the priest and Levite, who is the focus of the parable’s attention. In the parable we have just heard the third servant had a very negative view of his master; he saw him as a hard man, reaping where he had not sown. Because this servant was so afraid of his master, he did nothing with what he had been given. The other two servants, in contrast, had a much more generous view of their master. As a result, they had the freedom to take initiatives and even to take risks with what they had been given. Jesus has revealed a very generous God to us; he has shown God to be someone whose generosity leaves us astonished, who remains faithful even when we are not faithful. Jesus does not reveal a God who is just waiting for us to fail, which is how the third servant saw his master. Rather, Jesus shows us a God who wants us to launch out into the deep and who continues to befriend us whether or not we catch anything. God’s loving fidelity should give us the courage to take risks with what God has given us. Perfect love drives out fear, according to the first letter of John. The assurance of God’s perfect love should drive out the kind of fear that left the third servant in the parable crippled. God who has been generous with us asks us to be generous with what we have received, and then to leave the rest to God.

And/Or

(iv) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

When we hear the word ‘talent’ we think instinctively of the gifts and talents we have been given. In the world of Jesus a talent was a sum of money. Indeed, it was the largest unit of currency in existence at the time. In telling his parables Jesus always drew from the world and culture of his time. In the ancient world, servants or slaves could often be entrusted with a great deal of responsibility. It wasn’t unusual for a person of wealth who was going on a long journey to give responsible tasks to his servants in his absence. In the story Jesus hold the wealthy man gave quite a lot of his own money, eight talents, to his servants. He wasn’t looking for the money back; he simply wanted them to use it well. The first two servants made good use of what was given to them. The third did nothing with what was given to him. According to the parable what held this third servant back was fear. He was afraid of losing what he had been given and thereby incurring the anger of his master. It seems as if he did not trust his master, even though his master trusted him. In his first letter, Saint John says, ‘there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts our fear’. Jesus has revealed to us the perfect love of God; he has shown us that God is love and as John says in that letter, ‘we love Ibecause he first loved us’. We relate to God and his Son not out of fear but out of love. This loving relationship gives us the freedom to take risks with what the Lord has given to us. We witness to the many ways that the Lord has graced us with courage. The Lord doesn’t look to us to be successful but he wants us to be generous and daring with what we have been given.

And/Or

(v) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

When we hear the word ‘talent’ today, we think in terms of natural abilities or gifts that people have. In Jesus’ day, a talent was a very large sum of money and that is the meaning of the word in today’s parable. A wealthy person entrusts sums of money to three servants in accordance with their ability. The person who received two talents and made two more was just as successful as the one who received five talents and made five more. Each performed very well according to their ability. The servant to whom the master gave one talent was obviously capable of making one more talent and ending up with two. However, out of fear of his master he did nothing with the one talent he was given. The image he had of his master as a demanding person, reaping where he hadn’t sown and gathering where he hadn’t scattered, may not have been true to the master’s nature. The rest of the parable suggests that the master was a generous man who was willing to entrust his servants with great responsibility. The third servant’s image of his master left him paralysed by fear and incapable of taking any action at all. If he had trusted his master to the extent that his master had trusted him, then he would have been free to do the little he was capable of doing. Perhaps one of the messages of the parable is that the Lord has entrusted us with gifts out of his love for us. He wants us to love him in return by placing what he has given us at the service of others. The first letter of John in the New Testament declares that perfect love casts out fear. Our recognition of the Lord’s love for us gives us the freedom to make use of what he has given us, without being held back by the fear of failure or the fear of our own inadequacies. As Mother Teresa, now a saint, once said, the Lord does not ask us to be successful but only to be faithful. We do our best with what the Lord has given us, knowing that the Lord looks lovingly on our efforts and will work powerfully through our efforts, even when they seem to us to be a failure.

And/Or

(vi) Saturday, Twenty First Week in Ordinary Time

The wealthy property owner in today’s gospel reading is evidently a generous and trusting person. Before departing on a journey abroad, he entrusts very large sums of money to three of his servants, to each in accordance with their ability to make good use of this generous gift. The property owner was not expecting these large sums of money back. He just wanted his servants to make good use of them. Two of the servants, recognizing the generous and trusting nature of their master, felt free to use well what they had been given in the trading market of the day. As a result, they increased the value of the asset they had been given. The third servant did nothing with what he had been given. Rather than recognizing the generous and trusting nature of his master, he was paralyzed by his image of his master as demanding and hard hearted. Fear of his master enslaved him and he did nothing with what he had been given, not even the minimal initiative of placing the investment in a bank to gain interest. What is Jesus saying to us through this parable drawn from daily life of the time? Perhaps Jesus wants us to recognize how generous God has been with each one of us, how much he has entrusted to us. God has given us the greatest treasure of all, his Son. God has also given us abilities that allow us to share this gift of his Son with others, in how we think, speak, act and live. God wants us to respond to his generous and trusting investment in us by living fearlessly out of all that he has given us. We are to be courageous in our witness to his Son. We are to take risks in our efforts to ensure that the riches of the gospel are received by as many as possible. God can deal with failure, even bringing great good out of it. However, there is little God can do with fearful inactivity.

Fr. Martin Hogan.

[myremnantarmy]

𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟐, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝐆𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐥

Saturday of the Second Week of Lent

Gospel

Lk 15:1-3, 11-32

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,

but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,

"This man welcomes sinners and eats with them."

So to them Jesus addressed this parable.

"A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,

'Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.'

So the father divided the property between them.

After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings

and set off to a distant country

where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.

When he had freely spent everything,

a severe famine struck that country,

and he found himself in dire need.

So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens

who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.

And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,

but nobody gave him any.

Coming to his senses he thought,

'How many of my father's hired workers

have more than enough food to eat,

but here am I, dying from hunger.

I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,

"Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

I no longer deserve to be called your son;

treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers."'

So he got up and went back to his father.

While he was still a long way off,

his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.

He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.

His son said to him,

'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;

I no longer deserve to be called your son.'

But his father ordered his servants,

'Quickly, bring the finest robe and put it on him;

put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.

Then let us celebrate with a feast,

because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;

he was lost, and has been found.'

Then the celebration began.

Now the older son had been out in the field

and, on his way back, as he neared the house,

he heard the sound of music and dancing.

He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.

The servant said to him,

'Your brother has returned

and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf

because he has him back safe and sound.'

He became angry,

and when he refused to enter the house,

his father came out and pleaded with him.

He said to his father in reply,

'Look, all these years I served you

and not once did I disobey your orders;

yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends.

But when your son returns

who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,

for him you slaughter the fattened calf.'

He said to him,

'My son, you are here with me always;

everything I have is yours.

But now we must celebrate and rejoice,

because your brother was dead and has come to life again;

he was lost and has been found.'"

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

TONIGHT (June 21) I'm doing an ONLINE READING for the LOCUS AWARDS at 16hPT. On SATURDAY (June 22) I'll be in OAKLAND, CA for a panel (13hPT) and a keynote (18hPT) at the LOCUS AWARDS.

#20yrsago Tunneling ssh over DNS https://web.archive.org/web/20040916193409/http://www.doxpara.com/bo2004.ppt

#10yrsago Open Wireless Movement’s router OS will let you securely share your Internet with the world https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/06/new-router-firmware-safely-opens-your-wi-fi-network-to-strangers/

#10yrsago Steve Wozniak wants you to support Mayday.US and get money out of politics https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoZ-tJiwBvc

#10yrsago Gangs run mass-scale romance cons with phished dating-site logins https://www.netcraft.com/blog/criminals-launch-mass-phishing-attacks-against-online-dating-sites/

#10yrsago Greenhouse: browser plugin that automatically annotates politicians’ names with their funders https://allaregreen.us

#10yrsago Judy Blume: parents shouldn’t worry about what their kids are reading https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/hay-festival/10868544/Judy-Blume-Parents-worry-too-much-about-what-children-read.html

#5yrsago Learning from Baltimore’s disaster, Florida city will pay criminals $600,000 to get free of ransomware attack https://apnews.com/article/0762caec21874fc09741abbdec0f78ab

#5yrsago Elizabeth Warren proposes a ban on private prisons and immigration facilities https://medium.com/@teamwarren/ending-private-prisons-and-exploitation-for-profit-cb6dea67e913

#5yrsago Google Maps is still overrun with scammers pretending to be local businesses, and Google’s profiting from them https://tech.slashdot.org/story/19/06/20/1746232/millions-of-business-listings-on-google-maps-are-fake----and-google-profits

#5yrsago America can only go to war against Iran if it reinstates the draft https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2018/05/31/iran-regime-change-american-troops-military-draft-column/656240002/

#5yrsago Independent audit finds Facebook activity has fallen by 20% since Cambridge Analytica https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/jun/20/facebook-usage-collapsed-since-scandal-data-shows

#5yrsago Tennessee lawmaker defends operating an unregistered “Christian magic supply” business https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/politics/2019/06/20/matthew-hill-tennessee-house-speaker-christian-magic-supply-business-dock-haley-gospel-magic/1481310001/

Support me this summer on the Clarion Write-A-Thon and help raise money for the Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers' Workshop!

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

A comedy sketch lasting over four minutes called “Vacation Church” was aired on the latest episode of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” The sketch portrays the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, along with a Bible verse.

This led a former cast member to wonder if it was the first time the show had shared the “Gospel” message.

The sketch features a Catholic family from Ohio, consisting of two parents and two children, attending church while on vacation in Jamaica. By Tuesday afternoon, the video had amassed over 1.7 million views…

[roman-catholic-mass-readings]

2nd March >> Mass Readings (Except USA)

Saturday, Second Week of Lent 

(Liturgical Colour: Violet: B (2))

First Reading Micah 7:14-15,18-20 Have pity on us one more time.

With shepherd’s crook, O Lord, lead your people to pasture, the flock that is your heritage, living confined in a forest with meadow land all around. Let them pasture in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old. As in the days when you came out of Egypt grant us to see wonders.

What god can compare with you: taking fault away, pardoning crime, not cherishing anger for ever but delighting in showing mercy? Once more have pity on us, tread down our faults, to the bottom of the sea throw all our sins. Grant Jacob your faithfulness, and Abraham your mercy, as you swore to our fathers from the days of long ago.

The Word of the Lord

R/ Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm Psalm 102(103):1-4,9-12

R/ The Lord is compassion and love.

My soul, give thanks to the Lord all my being, bless his holy name. My soul, give thanks to the Lord and never forget all his blessings.

R/ The Lord is compassion and love.

It is he who forgives all your guilt, who heals every one of your ills, who redeems your life from the grave, who crowns you with love and compassion.

R/ The Lord is compassion and love.

His wrath will come to an end; he will not be angry for ever. He does not treat us according to our sins nor repay us according to our faults.

R/ The Lord is compassion and love.

For as the heavens are high above the earth so strong is his love for those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west so far does he remove our sins.

R/ The Lord is compassion and love.

Gospel Acclamation Luke 15:18

Glory and praise to you, O Christ! I will leave this place and go to my father and say: ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.’ Glory and praise to you, O Christ!

Gospel Luke 15:1-3,11-32 The prodigal son.

The tax collectors and the sinners were all seeking the company of Jesus to hear what he had to say, and the Pharisees and the scribes complained. ‘This man’ they said ‘welcomes sinners and eats with them.’ So he spoke this parable to them:

‘A man had two sons. The younger said to his father, “Father, let me have the share of the estate that would come to me.” So the father divided the property between them. A few days later, the younger son got together everything he had and left for a distant country where he squandered his money on a life of debauchery.

‘When he had spent it all, that country experienced a severe famine, and now he began to feel the pinch, so he hired himself out to one of the local inhabitants who put him on his farm to feed the pigs. And he would willingly have filled his belly with the husks the pigs were eating but no one offered him anything. Then he came to his senses and said, “How many of my father’s paid servants have more food than they want, and here am I dying of hunger! I will leave this place and go to my father and say: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as one of your paid servants.” So he left the place and went back to his father.

‘While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with pity. He ran to the boy, clasped him in his arms and kissed him tenderly. Then his son said, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son.” But the father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring out the best robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the calf we have been fattening, and kill it; we are going to have a feast, a celebration, because this son of mine was dead and has come back to life; he was lost and is found.” And they began to celebrate. ‘Now the elder son was out in the fields, and on his way back, as he drew near the house, he could hear music and dancing. Calling one of the servants he asked what it was all about. “Your brother has come” replied the servant “and your father has killed the calf we had fattened because he has got him back safe and sound.” He was angry then and refused to go in, and his father came out to plead with him; but he answered his father, “Look, all these years I have slaved for you and never once disobeyed your orders, yet you never offered me so much as a kid for me to celebrate with my friends. But, for this son of yours, when he comes back after swallowing up your property – he and his women – you kill the calf we had been fattening.”

‘The father said, “My son, you are with me always and all I have is yours. But it was only right we should celebrate and rejoice, because your brother here was dead and has come to life; he was lost and is found.”’

The Gospel of the Lord

R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

[mariacallous]

Worshipers in a chapel at the University of Cambridge said they were left “in tears” after a research student claimed that Jesus’ side wound in Renaissance and Medieval paintings of the crucifixion can be likened to a vagina, suggesting Jesus could have been transgender.

At an evening service at Trinity College chapel last Sunday, Joshua Heath, a junior research fellow, displayed three paintings of the crucifixion, including Jean Malouel’s 1400 work Pietà and Henri Maccheroni’s 1990 work “Christs,” The Telegraph reported Saturday.

Heath, whose Ph.D. was supervised by the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, said during the service that Jesus’ side wound and blood flowing to the groin in Pietà looks like a vagina.

When Jesus was crucified and died on the cross before His Resurrection, John 19:34 says Roman soldiers broke the legs of the two men who were crucified alongside Him, but seeing that Jesus was already dead, one of the Roman soldiers decided not to break Jesus' legs but instead pierced His side with a spear, "and at once there came out blood and water." 

The Cambridge research student then referred to the 14th century Prayer Book of Bonne of Luxembourg, saying this side wound was isolated and “takes on a decidedly vaginal appearance.”

The British newspaper quoted one worshiper as saying Heath’s claims left them “in tears” and made them feel excluded from the church. And when many students complained, the dean of Trinity College, Michael Banner, called Heath’s views “legitimate.”

A congregation member wrote a complaint to Banner, saying: “I left the service in tears. You offered to speak with me afterwards, but I was too distressed. I am contemptuous of the idea that by cutting a hole in a man, through which he can be penetrated, he can become a woman.

“I am especially contemptuous of such imagery when it is applied to our Lord, from the pulpit, at Evensong. I am contemptuous of the notion that we should be invited to contemplate the martyrdom of a ‘trans Christ,’ a new heresy for our age.”

Last June, Christians were outraged by the decision of a Scottish teachers union, Education Institute of Scotland, to promote a play depicting Jesus Christ as trans in celebration of June, what LGBT activists call “pride month.”

The production was titled, “The Gospel According to Jesus Queen of Heaven.” “The play imagines a transgender Jesus coming back to the world today,” the play’s creator, Jo Clifford, told BBC News in a previous interview. 

Clifford, a man who identifies as female, added, “She has a communion, shares bread and wine with the audience, which is really a gesture of solidarity in the face of death, and she gives a blessing.”

In September 2020, the National Church of Iceland featured a bearded Jesus with breasts in an ad purportedly meant to encourage children to attend Sunday school.

The animated ad — part of a campaign costing about $14,800, which was contributed mostly by the bishop’s office — depicted Jesus as having breasts and jumping around as he points to a church. 

When the ad was shared on social media, one of the comments read, “There was a reason I left the National Church and found another Christian congregation.” Another read, “Shame on the bishop!” Some called it “tasteless” and “particularly stupid.” Another user wrote, “The church should be ashamed for humiliating Jesus like this.”

[lopez-richter-fangirl]

Reminder that we are now in the final week of the Tinlightenment World Tour kickstarter! We are 70% funded which means we have less than $60k left to raise

Once we reach that goal, we get an incredible season of events including Spies Are Forever concert screenings in LA and London, a full run of Solve it Squad at the Edinburgh Fringe and a brand new musical at the Adelaide Fringe

All of the events will be LIVE with the option of digital tickets and some going on YouTube down the line

There really is something for everyone so if you’ve ever enjoyed any of the content Tin Can Bros have posted over the years, consider paying it back now. Literally any amount makes a difference, even if you can only back a dollar! And if you have been meaning to back but haven’t got round to it yet, now’s the time! If you can’t back, keep sharing the campaign and engaging with the promo they’re posting on social media to boost it in the algorithm

The campaign ends at 4pm PST on Saturday March 2nd and it is all or nothing. If they don’t make the goal your card won’t get charged and they won’t get any of the money so they can’t make any of these events happen

[orthodoxydaily]

Icon, Saints&Reading: Saturday, July 2, 2023

July 2_July 19

THE HOLY APOSTLE JUDE, BROTHER OF THE LORD (80)

The Holy Apostle Jude, one of the twelve apostles of Christ, is descended from King David and Solomon and was the son of Righteous Joseph the Betrothed (Sunday after the Nativity of the Lord) by his first wife.

In his Gospel, the Holy Apostle John the Theologian writes, “... neither did his brethren believe in Him” (John. 7:5). Saint Theophylact, Archbishop of Bulgaria, explains this passage. He says that at the beginning of the Lord Jesus Christ’s earthly ministry, Joseph’s sons, Jude, did not believe in His divine nature. Tradition says that when Saint Joseph returned from Egypt, he began to divide his possessions among his sons. He wanted to allot a share to Christ the Savior, born miraculously and incorruptibly from the All-Pure Virgin Mary. The brothers were opposed to this because Jesus was born of another mother. Only James, later called “The Brother of God,” offered to share his portion with Him.

Jude came to believe in Christ the Savior as the awaited Messiah, and he followed Him and was chosen as one of the twelve Apostles. Mindful of his sin, the Apostle Jude considered himself unworthy to be called the Lord’s brother, and in his Epistle, he calls himself merely the brother of James.

The Holy Apostle Jude also had other names: the Evangelist Matthew terms him “Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddeus” (Mt. 10:3). The Holy Evangelist Mark also calls him Thaddeus (Mark 3:18), and in the Acts of the Holy Apostles he is called Barsabas (Acts 15: 22). This was customary at that time.

After the Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ, Saint Jude traveled about preaching the Gospel. He first propagated the faith in Christ in Judea, Galilee, Samaria, and Idumaia, and later in the lands of Arabia, Syria, and Mesopotamia. Finally, he went to the city of Edessa. Here he finished the work not completed by his predecessor, Saint Thaddeus, Apostle of the Seventy (August 21). There is a tradition that Saint Jude went to Persia, where he wrote his catholic Epistle in Greek. In the Epistle, much profound truth was expressed in a few words.

Saint Jude’s Epistle speaks about the Holy Trinity, the Incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ, the good and bad angels, and the dread Last Judgment. The Apostle urges believers to guard themselves against fleshly impurity, to be diligent in prayer, faith, and love, to convert the lost to the path of salvation, and to defend themselves from the teachings of heretics. He also says that it is not enough just to be converted to Christianity, but faith must be demonstrated by good works. He cites the rebellious angels and men God punishes (verse 6) to support this.

The Holy Apostle Jude died as a martyr around 80 near Mt. Ararat in Armenia, where he was crucified and pierced by arrows.

THE KOROBEININIKOVSKAYA -KAZAN ICON OF THE MOTHER OF GOD

Since the beginning of the 20th century, The Korobeinikovskaya Kazan Icon of the Mother of God is the greatest Altai shrine and the only miraculous icon in Siberia; it is located in the Mother of God-Kazan Church in the village of Korobeinikova (Ust-Pristansky district of the Altai Territory). The temple was erected in 1902 under the guidance of the builder-architect Borzenko and consecrated in 1903–1904. it is a remarkable masterpiece of church architecture. In the temple, decorated with paintings, there were many holy icons, among which the large Kazan icon of the Mother of God, which later received the name Korobeinikovsky, stood out with its fantastic beauty. The Most Holy Theotokos in a purple robe and the blessing of the Divine Infant was depicted on a gold background in a mosaic frame.

      1938 the temple was closed, looted, and turned into a granary. The Kazan icon of the Mother of God, thrown under her feet, was saved from desecration by a resident, a blind woman Olga Peregudova, nicknamed Olushka Dark, in the late 1990s, she was canonized as a locally venerated saint. The Most Holy Theotokos appeared to the pious Olga in a dream, commanding her to take the icon from the desecrated church. The image was severely damaged; only the eyes of the Mother of God and the Divine Child were distinguishable. After some time, a miracle happened - the icon was renewed, shone with new colors, and miracles began to occur from it.

      Several pious families kept the miraculous icon before the time came in June 1994 to return the icon to Korobeynikovo.

      Until June 29, 1994, the Korobeinikovskaya Kazan Icon of the Mother of God stayed in the Intercession Cathedral in Barnaul. Thousands of believers were able to bow to the miraculous image.

      On July 2, 1994, the miraculous icon was returned to the restored Kazan Church in the village of Korobeynikova in a crowded procession. She became a revered shrine of the Bogoroditse-Kazan Monastery, which opened in the town. In remembrance of this event, the celebration of the Korobeinikov Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos was established.

More about this highly venerated icon here

JUDE 1:1-10 

1 Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: 2 Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. 3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to exhort you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. 4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. 5 But I want to remind you. However, you once knew that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; 7 as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. 8 These dreamers also defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries. 9 Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" 10, But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things, they corrupt themselves.

MATTHEW 8:5-13 

5 When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented." 7 And Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him." 8 The centurion answered, saying, "Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it. 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled and said to those who followed, "Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you." And his servant was healed that same hour.

[gatekeeper-watchman]

Daily Devotionals for April 29, 2023 Proverbs: God's Wisdom for Daily Living Devotional Scripture:

Proverbs 15:10-12(KJV): 10 Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth reproof shall die. 11 Hell and destruction are before the LORD: how much more than the hearts of the children of men? 12 A scorner loveth not one that reproveth him: neither will he go unto the wise. Proverbs 15:10-12(Amp): 10 There is severe discipline for him who forsakes God's way, and he who hates reproof will die (physically, morally, and spiritually). 11 Sheol (the place of the dead) and Abaddon (the abyss, the final place of the accuser Satan) both are before the Lord; how much more than the hearts of the children of men? 12 A scorner has no love for one who rebukes him, neither will he go to the wise (for counsel).

Thought for the Day

Verse 10 - Correction and reproof keep a man on the path of life. Just as a child requires correction to learn the things that will help him grow and mature properly, we all need the correction of our heavenly Father to avoid the things that can destroy us. Notice that the death spoken of is physical, moral, and spiritual. All who are without Christ are spiritually dead, though they do not know it. It is only with Christ and by His guidance that we can safely journey through this life.

"And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins: Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)" (Ephesians 2:1-6).

Verse 11 - If hell and the place of the dead are visible to God, how much more are men's hearts visible to Him? We may be able to deceive people into thinking that we are good Christians, but God sees our hearts. If we are not walking in the truth, He knows it. We will reap what we sow. If we belong to Christ, our lives should show it.

Verse 12 - Fools despise correction and their pride keeps them from coming to the wise ones for guidance. Their lusts and desires lead them. If they do not repent and turn to Jesus, their end will be hell. The Lord does not desire that anyone should perish, but because He has given each of us the gift of free will, we choose whom we serve, either God or Satan. We may think we can choose to serve ourselves, but this is not an option. If we serve ourselves, we are serving Satan. God has given us, His children, the task of sharing the Gospel with those around us so that they will have the opportunity to accept Christ as their Savior and escape hell (2 Peter 3:9). May we welcome the Lord's correction so that we will not open the door for Satan to attack us through our rebellion and sin. May we also pray for and witness to the lost so that they may be saved and escape the torments of hell.

Prayer Devotional for the Day

Father God, thank You that You are a good Father. Deliver us of any rebellion that would cause me to ignore Your leading in our lives. Strengthen and help us, so that we will always be obedient children. We do appreciate Your patience toward us. Give us patience with those around us who do not know You. Let us all share the gospel in love with each of them. Thank you, for delivering us from hell. We are grateful for the promise of Your presence with us in this life and the promise of heaven to come. Lord, watch over all of Your children and keep us from evil. I ask this in the name of Jesus. Amen From Steven P. Miller @ParkermillerQ, CEO and Founder of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Groups Saturday, April 29, 2023 Jacksonville, Florida., Duval County, USA. Instagram: steven_parker_miller_1956, Twitter: @GatekeeperWatchman1, @ParkermillerQ, https://twitter.com/StevenPMiller6 Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/gatekeeperwatchman, https://www.tumblr.com/gatekeeper-watchman Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StevenParkerMillerQ #GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO, #Ephraim1, #IAM, #Sparkermiller,#Eldermiller1981

[lawrenceop]

HOMILY for 34th Sat per annum (II)

Apoc 22:1-7; Ps 94; Luke 21:34-36

The Church has its own liturgical rhythm and pace, and so, even as the world seems to gear up for Christmas and the new year, the Church’s Liturgy strikes a different tone as we stand on the cusp of Advent – she calls us to slow down and be watchful. As Jesus says in the Gospel, “watch yourselves” or, looking to a different translation, “take heed to yourselves.” 

The sense is that we should look after ourselves, indeed, we should be watchful of our own hearts and be careful not to let our hearts be “coarsened.” For a coarsened heart, weighed down or panicked by temporal cares, and so seeking to escape from life’s worries through drunkenness and other sensual pleasures, is a heart that becomes less sensitive to God; we become less open to the many opportunities to receive his graces; less attuned to his coming among us, and indeed we’re do not notice God’s Presence in our lives. 

Christ the divine Physician, therefore, is our cardiologist, who counsels us to watch ourselves, to guard our hearts, by seeking refuge in his Sacred Heart. Thus he calls on us to stay awake and pray at all times. Prayer, therefore, is not an after thought or a desperate measure, not something that we squeeze in between the other pressing engagements or the more entertaining pursuits that consume our time and capture our hearts. Rather, prayer is necessary for our spiritual health, like the exercise the cardiologist recommends, and so the Church’s Liturgy calls us to slow down, to retreat from the world’s demands, and to pray. We’re called to be like St John the Beloved Disciple, who leaned against the breast of the Lord, and so let the heartbeat of Jesus set the pace for our lives. For this is what prayer does to us.  

As Pope Benedict XVI said in a letter he wrote to seminarians, but which applies to every one of us: “When the Lord tells us to “pray constantly”, he is obviously not asking us to recite endless prayers, but urging us never to lose our inner closeness to God. Praying means growing in this intimacy. So it is important that our day should begin and end with prayer; that we listen to God as the Scriptures are read; that we share with him our desires and our hopes, our joys and our troubles, our failures and our thanks for all his blessings, and thus keep him ever before us as the point of reference for our lives.” These words seem to me good advice at the close of another liturgical year, calling us to centre ourselves around the Lord, even as St John saw him enthroned at the centre of the heavenly city, and so from Christ flows life, and healing, and fruitfulness. We are called to become that city, with Christ enthroned in the centre, and his light illuminating our minds and our actions. Our daily prayer, therefore, is Maranatha; Come, Lord Jesus! Come, and be the centre of my life.   

As always, our model in prayer and discipleship is the Blessed Virgin Mary, to whom the Lord Jesus came so perfectly and uniquely when she said to the angel, Fiat mihi secundum Verbum tuum. And so, on this final day of the liturgical year, we look to Our Lady. For it is from Mary that we learn to take heed of ourselves and to guard our hearts; to refine our motivations and desires; and to turn to God so that his light might shine upon us. 

Fittingly, therefore, next Saturday as Advent begins, we shall observe the devotions and reparation asked of us by Our Lady of the Rosary at Fatima. Here in the Rosary Shrine we do this every first Saturday of the month throughout the year, with prayer and meditation before the Blessed Sacrament, pondering the Word of God in silence, examining our hearts and going to Confession, receiving Communion in reparation for sins against the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and then praying the Rosary together in the monthly Rosary procession as we carry blessed candles. These acts of reparation and prayer, prescribed by Our Lady, are intended to repair those hearts that have been coarsened; to attune us to God’s grace which convicts us of sin and converts us; and to fill us with the Presence of God through a worthy and well-prepared reception of the Sacraments.

Through the first Saturday devotions, we respond to the words of Christ in today’s Gospel: “Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.” As ever, our Blessed Mother shows us the way to obey the Lord, and she leads us into a deeper intimacy with him.

[frmartinshomiliesandreflections]

7th September >> Fr. Martin's Reflections/Homilies on Today's Mass Readings for Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time (Inc. Luke 6:1-5): ‘The Son of Man is master of the Sabbath’.

Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Except USA) Luke 6:1-5 The Son of Man is master of the sabbath.

One sabbath Jesus happened to be taking a walk through the cornfields, and his disciples were picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. Some of the Pharisees said, ‘Why are you doing something that is forbidden on the sabbath day?’ Jesus answered them, ‘So you have not read what David did when he and his followers were hungry – how he went into the house of God, took the loaves of offering and ate them and gave them to his followers, loaves which only the priests are allowed to eat?’ And he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is master of the sabbath.’

Gospel (USA) Luke 6:1-5 Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?

While Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath, his disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. Some Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?” Jesus said to them in reply, “Have you not read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry? How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering, which only the priests could lawfully eat, ate of it, and shared it with his companions?” Then he said to them, “The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.”

Reflections (9)

(i) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In today’s first reading, Saint Paul asks a question that is worth reflecting upon. ‘What do you have that was not given to you?’ Paul is reminding the members of the church in Corinth that so much in life is gift. We might work for something but even the ability to work is itself a gift. The people who matter most to us in life are a gift. We probably didn’t go looking for them; they came to us. We have just begun the Season of Creation in the church, which goes from 1st of September to the 4th of October, the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. It is a good time to recall how the natural world is a gift that has been given to us. Nature is a wonderful gift that can bring us healing and that can help to renew our spirits. In the gospel reading, Jesus’ disciples were treating the ears of the corn in the cornfield through which they walked as a gift. The Pharisees accused them of breaking God’s Law, but Jesus defended their actions. They were hungry and taking a few ears of corn to satisfy their hunger, which was perfectly acceptable according to Jesus’ understanding of God’s Law. It might be the equivalent of us picking and eating the black currants that have been appearing in various hedgerows at the moment. Jesus would want us to appreciate the ways that God is always gracing us and bestowing gifts on us. The appropriate response to the experience of being gifted is gratitude. A spirit of thanksgiving to God is to characterize the Lord’s followers. As Saint Paul says in another of his letters, ‘Give thanks in all circumstances’. No matter how difficult life may be for us, there is always something for which we can give thanks. A grateful attitude for all of God’s gifts to everyone can make us less critical of others.

And/Or

(ii) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In today’s gospel reading the Pharisees criticize the disciples of Jesus for breaking the Sabbath Law. To satisfy their hunger, they were picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. This was a form of reaping, as far as the Pharisees were concerned, and reaping was forbidden on the Sabbath. In his response, Jesus defends the actions of his disciples and turns to a similar situation in the Jewish Scriptures in support of his position. Jesus insists that legal prescription has to yield before human need. King David recognized this when he allowed his followers to eat bread that had been set aside for sacrifice to God, because his followers were hungry. If David can make such a decision, how much more so can Jesus do so, the Son of David, the Jewish Messiah, the Lord of the Sabbath. Law, including religious Law, is at the service of human need. If human regulations prevent basic human needs from being met, such as the need for food, then such regulations must yield before those needs. Jesus always gave priority to meeting the needs of others, especially their basic human needs for food, clothing, shelter and health. He came that we may have life and have it to the full. Today’s gospel reading suggests that no set of human regulations should stand in the way of the basic needs of people being met, and being met without delay.

And/Or

(iii) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In the gospel reading, Jesus is in dispute with the Pharisees as to what people can and cannot do on the Sabbath. The Jewish Sabbath, as you know is a Saturday, today. For the Pharisees, picking ears of corn and crushing them to eat them constituted work and was forbidden on the Sabbath. For Jesus, however, it was always legitimate to satisfy one’s physical hunger on the Sabbath, especially for people like himself and his disciples who were never sure where the next meal was going to come from. The laws of the Pharisees about the Sabbath were not Jesus’ master or his Lord. Rather, Jesus declares that he himself is Lord of the Sabbath. Sunday is now the Christian Sabbath. As Lord of the Sabbath, Jesus tells us in this morning’s gospel reading that any work which serves the basic needs of others is always legitimate on the Sabbath. The Sabbath is not so much the day when we do no work at all as the day when we try to do God’s work, the work of responding to the needs of others and the call they make on us.

And/Or

(iv) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In this morning’s gospel reading, Jesus insists, against the objection of the Pharisees, that his disciples be allowed to satisfy their hunger by picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and then eating them, even though it was the Sabbath day. For the Pharisees, what the disciples were doing constituted work and so was against the Sabbath Law. However, for Jesus human need always took priority over human regulation, and Jesus would have regarded the very developed regulations about the Sabbath in his day as human regulations rather than God’s law. At the beginning of his ministry when he spoke in the synagogue of Nazareth Jesus had said that he had come to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour, and that meant reaching out to people in their need, giving sight to the blind, healing to the sick, release to the oppressed, acceptance to the rejected, and food to the hungry. Jesus took people’s ordinary human needs in this life very seriously. The kingdom of God that he proclaimed was not just an otherworldly reality; it was also about fullness of life here and now, ‘today’. That is why the church has always been concerned about the material and social conditions in which people live.

And/Or

(v) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

We often find ourselves in some kind of a clash with others. Sometimes the clash is serious and takes time to be resolved. At other times the clash is not so significant and it passes rather quickly. In this morning’s gospel reading Jesus has a clash with the Pharisees over the behaviour of his disciples. The Pharisees criticize Jesus for allowing the disciples to break the Law by working on the Sabbath, picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. The Pharisees would have regarded this as a form of reaping. However, Jesus defends his disciples on the grounds that they were hungry and that they had a right to satisfy their hunger. In other words, human need took precedence over legal regulations. Jesus’ priorities were different to those of the Pharisees. Ensuring that people’s basic human needs were met was more important to him than the keeping of regulations, even religious ones. As his disciples we try to allow his priorities to become our priorities. We strive to ensure that people’s basic human needs are being met, even if that means coming into conflict with others or going against the traditional ways of doing things.

And/Or

(vi) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

A lot of the criticism directed against Jesus by the religious authorities in the gospels relates to food. He was often criticized for eating with the wrong kind of people, those considered sinners according to the Jewish Law. In this morning’s gospel reading, it is Jesus’ disciples who are at the receiving end of criticism for the way they eat. The religious leaders criticize them for eating in a way that was in breach of the Sabbath. In picking ears of corn and rubbing them in their hands, they were considered to be engaged in the work of reaping and such ‘work’ was forbidden on the Sabbath. Just as Jesus defended himself against the criticism of his eating style, so on this occasion he defends his disciples. He does so with reference to an incident in the Jewish Scriptures which shows that the normal regulations can be overruled when the basic human need of hunger needs to be met. In a similar way, Jesus claimed, the hunger of his disciples, their need for food, took precedence over a rather narrow interpretation of the Sabbath Law. For Jesus, the human person was always at the centre, not human law, even religious law. The basic needs of others took priority over all else, whether it was their physical need for food, or their spiritual need for God’s love and mercy. Jesus teaches us that attentiveness to the other, responsiveness to the call of the other, is what really matters. Human regulations of whatever kind must be at the service of the well being of others, and should promote human flourishing.

And/Or

(vii) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

In today’s first reading Paul calls upon the church in Colossae not to let themselves ‘drift away from the hope promised by the Good News, which you have heard’. There is a lot of hopelessness in today’s culture. Many people struggle with a sense of despondency. Paul is reminding us that the gospel the Lord proclaimed gives us hope. Jesus has shown us by his life, death and resurrection that God is with us and for us. He has assured us that nothing need come between us and God’s love for us. He has demonstrated that God’s love is life-giving both in this earthly life and beyond it. God through Jesus wants to enter into a deeply personal relationship with us, a relationship that will endure beyond death. This good news gives us hope, even in our darkest moments. Our faith is always a hope-filled faith. As Paul says elsewhere in his letter, ‘Hope does not disappoint us because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us’. The Holy Spirit is the Paraclete, our Advocate, the one who stands alongside us to defend us. The Lord stands alongside us to defend us, to strengthen us, in and through the Spirit. This is what we find Jesus doing in the gospel reading. He stands alongside and defends his disciples against the unfair criticism of the Pharisees, ‘Why are you doing something that is forbidden on the Sabbath day?’ The answer Jesus gave to them was, ‘The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath’. He is Lord of our lives, too, and his lordship is one of love. Therein lies our hope.

And/Or

(viii) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

I am struck by that question that Paul asks in today’s gospel reading, ‘What do you have that was not given to you?’ Paul is reminding us that, ultimately, everything is gift. Because everything is gift, he says, we should not boast as if it was all down to us. I think we can agree with Paul that so much of what matters in life is gift. We receive much more than we achieve. Because so much is gift, we constantly need a spirit of gratitude. One of the good fruits of these Covid days is that we have begun to appreciate more fully the good things that are close to us, all that is around us. We don’t have to get on an airplane and travel long distances to find a place that amazes us. There is so much in our own country, on our own doorstep. A restless spirit that drives us beyond where we live towards places unknown is something good, but so also is that receptive spirit that helps us to appreciate more fully where we already are and what we have been given. In the gospel reading, we find the disciples going through a corn field, picking ears of corn, rubbing them in their hands and eating them. They experienced the corn field as God’s gift to them, allowing them to satisfy their hunger. No doubt, after the disciples passed through there was plenty more corn for harvesting. There was another group, the Pharisees, who, looking at what the disciples were doing, did not see a group of people rejoicing in God’s good gifts to us. Rather, they saw people who were breaking God’s law relating to the Sabbath. Jesus, however, strongly defends the actions of his disciples. Jesus knew what the Sabbath was about; he was after all Lord of the Sabbath. The Sabbath day was especially a time to acknowledge God’s good gifts to us and to give thanks for them. Each day we are asked to be thankful, because we recognize that so much that is of value in life has come to us as gift.  

And/Or

(ix) Saturday, Twenty Second Week in Ordinary Time

We are in the Season of Creation which continues until 4th October, the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. Today’s gospel reading is set within the setting of nature, Jesus and his disciples walking through cornfields. Galilee was a very fertile part of Palestine and it is no surprise that the gospel accounts of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee has him frequently referring to nature. Nature spoke to him of his own mission to bring God’s reign to earth, the farmer sowing his seed, the seed growing secretly in the ground, the planting of a mustard seed, the harvesting of a vineyard, the wild flowers growing in the fields, the birds of the air, and many more such examples. God spoke to Jesus through nature and God continues to speak to us through nature today. God calls out to us through nature as he calls out to us through one another, especially through the poor and the vulnerable. In the gospel reading, Jesus’ disciples were enjoying the fruits of nature, picking ears of corn as they walked through cornfields to satisfy their hunger. The Pharisees criticized them for doing this on the Sabbath, because they saw it as a form of reaping and, therefore, a form of work forbidden on the Sabbath. However, Jesus’ response to the Pharisees shows that for him human need takes priority over religious law. Of greater concern to Jesus than religious law was the bringing of people to the fullness of life. He recognized that the created world can serve human flourishing, provided we treat it with the reverence and respect it deserves.

Fr. Martin Hogan.

[myremnantarmy]

𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑

Saturday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel Mt 25:14-30

Jesus told his disciples this parable:

"A man going on a journey

called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.

To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one–

to each according to his ability.

Then he went away.

Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,

and made another five.

Likewise, the one who received two made another two.

But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground

and buried his master's money.

After a long time

the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them.

The one who had received five talents

came forward bringing the additional five.

He said, 'Master, you gave me five talents.

See, I have made five more.'

His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.

Since you were faithful in small matters,

I will give you great responsibilities.

Come, share your master's joy.'

Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said,

'Master, you gave me two talents.

See, I have made two more.'

His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.

Since you were faithful in small matters,

I will give you great responsibilities.

Come, share your master's joy.'

Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said,

'Master, I knew you were a demanding person,

harvesting where you did not plant

and gathering where you did not scatter;

so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.

Here it is back.'

His master said to him in reply, 'You wicked, lazy servant!

So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant

and gather where I did not scatter?

Should you not then have put my money in the bank

so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?

Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten.

For to everyone who has,

more will be given and he will grow rich;

but from the one who has not,

even what he has will be taken away.

And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.'"