9th Saturday - St. Raphael

 

Today’s first reading in about St. Raphael. St. Raphael is one of the seven Archangels who stand before the throne of the Lord, and one of the only three mentioned by name in the Bible. He appears, by name, only in the Book of Tobit. Raphael's name means "God heals." This identity came about because of the biblical story that claims he "healed" the earth when it was defiled by the sins of the fallen angels in the apocryphal book of Enoch. Disguised as a human in the Book of Tobit, Raphael refers to himself as "Azarias the son of the great Ananias" and travels alongside Tobit's son, Tobiah. Once Raphael returns from his journey with Tobiah, he declares to Tobit that he was sent by the Lord to heal his blindness and deliver Sarah, Tobiah's future wife, from the demon Asmodeus. It is then that his true healing powers are revealed and he makes himself known as "the angel Raphael, one of the seven, who stand before the Lord" Tobit 12:15.

The demon Asmodeus killed every man Sarah married on the night of the wedding, before the marriage could be consummated. Raphael guided Tobiah and taught him how to safely enter the marriage with Sarah. Raphael is credited with driving the evil spirit from Sarah and restoring Tobit's vision, allowing him to see the light of Heaven and for receiving all good things through his intercession.

Although only the archangels Gabriel and Michael are mentioned by name in the New Testament, the Gospel of John speaks of the pool at Bethesda, where many ill people rested, awaiting the moving of the water. "An angel of the Lord descended at certain times into the pond; and the water was moved. And he that went down first into the pond after the motion of the water was made whole of whatsoever infirmity he lay under" John 5:1-4.

Because of the healing powers often linked to Raphael, the angel spoken of is generally associated with St. Raphael, the Archangel. St. Raphael is the patron saint of travelers, the blind, bodily ills, happy meetings, nurses, physicians and medical workers. He is often pictured holding a staff and either holding or standing on a fish. His feast day is celebrated on September 29, along with St. Michael and St. Gabriel. St. Raphael, pray for those who are sick, that God may grant healing through your angelic intercession.

Corpus Christi Year A

  

Today is the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ. In the Eucharist we believe it is truly the Son of God, though we cannot see Him.

When we receive Holy Communion, while in the state of grace, we become one with the Heart of Jesus. In the Gospel today, Jesus said, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in Me and I in him.” And Our Lord promises that if we eat His flesh and drink His blood we will live forever and that we will rise from the dead. He said, “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.”

And because we believe Jesus is really and truly present in the Eucharist many parishioners spend time with Our Lord in adoration every week here in our parish. Our parish is so blessed to have Eucharistic adoration. Jesus is silently touching hearts and lives of all who come to be with Him.

The Solemnity of Corpus Christi was brought about due to a Eucharistic miracle. In 1263, a priest from Prague was in route to Rome making a pilgrimage asking God for help to strengthen him in his faith, because he doubted his vocation. He stopped in a village called Bolsena, 70 miles north of Rome. While celebrating Mass there, as he raised the Host during the consecration, the bread turned into visible flesh and began to bleed. The drops of blood fell onto the small white cloth, called a corporal. That blood stained cloth can still be seen in the Basilica of Orvieto north of Rome. The following year in 1264 Pope Urban IV instituted the feast of the body and blood of Jesus, today’s solemnity of Corpus Christi. Since then, on the feast of Corpus Christi, many churches will have a Eucharistic procession, in which the people will follow Jesus in the Eucharist down the streets, on sidewalks and through the city.

On Sunday, Fr. Aaron will have Mass and lead us in a Eucharistic procession, as he processes Jesus in the monstrance through the streets of Little River.

The miracle of the Eucharist, which brought about the Feast of Corpus Christi strengthened the faith of a doubting priest. The drops of blood that fell on white cloth pointed to the fact, that Jesus is really and truly present in the Eucharist.

The same Jesus who came down from heaven in the womb of Mary, walked the face of the earth, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, suffered, died, was buried, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, is the same Jesus in the Eucharist today, but resurrected.
The miracle of the host turning to flesh and bleeding--- pointed to the fact that in the Eucharist is a real and entire person. The Eucharist is not just a hunk of flesh or just some blood. The Eucharist is a person! The Eucharist is the whole Jesus! We can’t have a relationship with a hunk of flesh, but we can have a relationship with a person, who will listen to us, and whom we can listen, as He speaks in the silence of our heart.

On Holy Thursday, when the apostles fell asleep during Our Lord’s agony in the Garden, remember the words of Jesus to Peter, James and John, “Could you not watch one hour with me!” Stay awake, so that you may not undergo temptation.”

In one of Pope Benedict’s homilies, he said, “The praying Church feels the intense desire to watch with Jesus; not to leave him alone in the night of the world, in the night of betrayal, in the night of the indifference of many”.

Today throughout the world there is so many churches in which Jesus in the tabernacle is abandoned. He is left all alone in the night of the world. And there are so many today, who are indifferent to Him, who fail to come and spend time with Him in the Eucharist. He has no one to come and visit Him, but He longs for men, women and children to come to Him, so that He may give them special gifts and graces to live out their lives. He wants to heal the broken hearted, give comfort to the sick, be a friend to the lonely, give strength to help us carry our cross, and give joy and hope to those who long to be loved.

When we come to adore Jesus in adoration, not only do we receive many graces to help us on our journey toward heaven, but graces for others as well. Pope Paul VI said, “Perpetual Adoration extends its influence far beyond the individual adorers, touching their homes and families and reaching out to the parish community and beyond!” And St. Faustina said, “A Holy Hour before the Most Blessed Sacrament, so pleases the Heart of Jesus, that every man, woman and child on earth receives a new effect of God’s graces!”

Our prayer before the Blessed Sacrament in adoration is so powerful that it helps many souls to go to heaven. Jesus told Dina Belanger, “A Holy Hour of prayer before the Blessed Sacrament is so important that a multitude of souls go to Heaven who otherwise would have gone to hell!”

Many people, in the wee hours of the night, watch with Jesus in adoration. Through Eucharistic adoration, adorers come in the middle of the night to spend time with their best friend. They come to open their heart to a God, who loves them, cares for them, comforts them, and gives them peace. They come to pray in reparation for those who do not watch with Jesus and they come to console the hidden Jesus.

St. Peter Julian Eymard said the heart of Jesus is beating and pulsating in the Eucharist. When there is a Eucharistic miracle often times, a Host will bleed. And whenever the miracle is approved by the Church, and then scientifically tested, the substance has always been found to be that of heart tissue. And the blood type is always the same --AB. It is also the same blood type that is on the shroud of Turin.

There are at least 152 Vatican approved Eucharistic miracles. One was approved in 2001 in India and 2006 in Mexico. 2008 in Poland.

One of the latest miracles to be approved happened on October 12, 2008, in Solkolka, Poland, a consecrated Host fell out of the hands of a priest while he was distributing Holy Communion. He picked it up and placed it in a vessel filled with water, in the tabernacle. After Mass, the vessel containing the host was placed in a safe --present in the sacristy. On October 19, 2008, after opening the safe one could clearly see a red stain on the Host that had fallen, which with the naked eye immediately gave the impression of being a bloodstain.

On January 7, 2009, a sample of the Host was taken and examined independently by two professionals in histopathology at the University of Medicine of Białystok. They issued a common declaration which states: ‘The sample sent for evaluation looks like myocardial tissue. In our opinion, of all the tissues of living organisms this is the one that resembles it the most.’

It sounds to me like what they are saying is the flesh taken from the Host, that they were examining, continues to appear to be live. Amazing!

My friends, the Heart of Jesus is beating for love of you in the Eucharist. Come and receive His love in Adoration.

All who come to adoration know, it is quite and peaceful. Just you and Jesus. Just Jesus and you. It is your hour with God, and His hour with you! A heart to heart exchange of love! What a beautiful way to keep watch with Jesus. Are you looking for that one hour of time alone—but only with you and Jesus?

Today, Jesus is speaking to you and He is telling you--- what He told Peter, James and John, “Will you not watch one hour with me?” Jesus does not want to be left alone in the night of the world, filled with indifference.

Today, on this Corpus Christi Solemnity, may Our Lady, Mother of the Eucharist, gently encourage Her children to spend time with Her Son.

You will be blessed not only in this life, but in the life to come, because your place in heaven will be raised in glory for every hour you spent with Jesus on earth.

Holy Trinity - Year A

 

Today, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Blessed Trinity, to whom we love, pray to and we desire to be in union. Today’s Solemnity is the feast day for our parish, because our parish is named after the Blessed Trinity.

When Adam and Eve lost their friendship with God due to original sin, heaven was closed and no one could enter-- and the divine friendship which they possessed was lost and broken. When it came time to restore that friendship, God chose to also reveal Himself as Trinity (three divine persons in one God). Before Jesus came to reveal the Trinity and to restore man’s friendship with God, the Jews could never have known there is one God in three persons.

And so, at the fullness of time, when mankind would be able to accept this most awesome mystery, God the Father sent His only Son into the world, by the power of the Holy Spirit, into the womb of the Virgin Mary, in order for Jesus to die on the Cross and redeem us, so that whoever believes in Him, might not perish, but might have eternal life.

The paschal mystery of Our Lord’s death, resurrection, and ascension is the source in which we can now come in contact with God--- and have union with the Blessed Trinity, especially through the sacraments.

In particular, the sacrament of Baptism, not only washes away original sin, but also prepares our heart for the indwelling of the Blessed Trinity, which allows us to enter into an intimate union and friendship with God. We are baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, which results in original sin being washed away, our soul flooded with grace, and our heart becomes a temple for the Trinity to dwell.

The Blessed Trinity dwells in the Christian soul as in a temple. Saint Paul explains that “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” And there in the inner recesses of the soul, we learn to converse intimately with God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Saint Catherine of Sienna said, “You O eternal Trinity are a deep ocean, into which the more I penetrate, the more I discover, and the more I discover, the more I seek you.” How wonderful it is therefore to seek the Blessed Trinity, who came within our soul at the moment of baptism!

During the Mass, the Father sends His Son. By the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus, Our Lord, becomes present on the altar. It is here on the altar, we come in contact with the Trinity.

Because the Trinity dwells here in our church, in the tabernacle, and becomes present here on the altar, there is no greater place in the world. Our church is grander, and more glorious, than the highest skyscrapers, the largest coliseum, or gymnasium because our church and every Catholic Church contains almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The Mass is beautiful and glorious, because heaven is opened, and we participate in the heavenly liturgy with the angels and saints, worshiping the Trinity, as we sing, Holy Holy Holy, Lord God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. The Mass is God’s grandeur in the feeble eyes of man. The Mass is the action of the Holy Spirit, whereby the Father sends the Son, to come in contact with us, and the mysteries of salvation. The mystery of Calvary will become present on the altar, and the mystery of the resurrection, as we receive the resurrected Jesus in Holy Communion.

We worship the Blessed Trinity, and kneel, in adoration at the Sacred Host, as it is elevated. The Sacred Host is God, and within the Host is the Blessed Trinity. The angel at Fatima, and the 3 children prostrated themselves, before the Sacred Host saying, “Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I adore thee profoundly.” And the children also said, “Most Holy Trinity, I adore thee, my God, my God, I love thee in the most Blessed Sacrament.”

Now, as we prepare to receive Holy Communion, let us ask Mary, the Daughter of the Father, the Mother of the Son, the Spouse of the Holy Spirit, to help us to understand that we truly come in contact, with the adorable Trinity in the Eucharist, especially Her Son in Holy Communion.

And at the moment of consecration, gaze upon the presence of God, with faith, and cry out, “Most Holy Trinity, I adore thee, my God, my God, I love thee in the most Blessed Sacrament.”

On special feast days and solemnities I like to quote from the saints, who so beautifully shed light on the mystery of the particular feast.

There are not too many saints, who can help us to love, pray to and desire union with the beauty of the Blessed Trinity-- as well as the Carmelite, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. The following is a prayer written by St. Elizabeth of the Trinity which reveals her love and desire to be in union with the Trinity. St. Elizabeth wrote: “My God, Blessed Trinity! Draw from my poor being what most contributes to your glory, and do with me what you wish-- both now and in eternity. May I no longer place between us any voluntary hindrance to your transforming action…Second by second, with a forever ‘actual’ intention, I desire to offer you all that I am and all that I have. Make my poor life, in intimate union with the Word Incarnate, an unceasing sacrifice of glory to the Blessed Trinity…

My God, how I wish to glorify you! O, if only in the exchange for my complete immolation, or for any other condition, it were in my power to enkindle the hearts of all your creatures and the whole of creation in the flames of your love, how I would desire to do so! May at least my poor heart belong to you completely, may I keep nothing for myself nor for creatures, not even a single heartbeat. May I have a burning love for all mankind, but only with you, through you and for you…. I desire above all to love you with the heart of St. Joseph, with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and with the adorable Heart of Jesus; and, finally, to submerge myself in that infinite ocean, that abyss of fire that consumes the Father and the Son in unity of the Holy Spirit, and love you with your own infinite love…

O eternal Father, beginning and end of all things! Through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you Jesus, your Word Incarnate, and through Him, with Him and in Him, I want to repeat unceasingly this cry that rises from the bottom of my soul; Father, glorify continually your Son, that your Son may glorify you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. O Jesus, who said, No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. Show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied!”

And you Spirit of Love! ‘Teach us all things’ and from Jesus with Mary in us until we become perfectly one in the bosom of the Father. Amen”.

Elizabeth’s beautiful prayer to the Trinity is a model for us to pray, to love and to desire---God-- the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. May it be so!