Thursday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Intention: That the darkness of stigma, exclusion, and marginalization might be dispelled by the light of compassion, respect, and welcome for every person as a child of God.
Today’s Gospel | Luke 13:31-35
Some Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Go away, leave this area because Herod wants to kill you.” He replied, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings today and tomorrow, and on the third day I accomplish my purpose. Yet I must continue on my way today, tomorrow, and the following day, for it is impossible that a prophet should die outside of Jerusalem.’
“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how many times I yearned to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were unwilling! Behold, your house will be abandoned. But I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
From the Sixteenth Meditation for the Time of Retreat | Saint John Baptist de La Salle
The holy King David says that he will be filled with gladness when God will grant him the grace to see him and to enjoy the glory of heaven. For the sight of God fills all the powers of a person’s soul in such a way that all consciousness of self is lost, so to speak. The person is entirely present within the divinity and totally penetrated with God. This is the happiness that will be possessed in heaven by those who have procured the salvation of souls, who have done this in a way that has been useful to the good of the Church, who have by their care restored the robe of innocence to a great number of their disciples, who might have lost it through sin, and who have helped preserve the innocence of many others who have never lost it.
Prayer
Eternal Father, your Son called all people to righteousness. With your grace, we can live rightly and faithfully in this world, working to do your will through the virtues that we embrace, the words that we speak, and the actions that we take. Help us to walk in your ways, always striving for perfection in our love for one another. May we make of ourselves a people worthy to build your kingdom. We ask this of you who lives and reigns with your Son and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.