Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, virgin and doctor of the Church  

Posted by siouxbhoney



On the day of 14 October


St. Teresa (1515-1582) was born in Avila and died in Alba, Spain. When only a child of seven, she ran away from home in the hope of being martyred by the Moors; in this way, she said she could come to see God. At the age of eighteen she joined the Carmelite Order and chose Christ as her heavenly Spouse. With the help of St. John of the Cross she reformed most of the Carmelite convents and founded new ones. She reached the highest degree of prayer and through prayer obtained such knowledge of divine things that in 1970 Pope Paul VI named her the first woman Doctor of the Church.


**Saint/Feast of the day copied from the Catholic Culture page today.


Why are we still in Galatians? I feel like I'm getting punished for something.

Okay, that was written before I actually read today's passage.

These are the times that I really like Paul. When he stops talking like a lawyer, he makes so much sense. Today's reading is about self-control. All throughout the bible, God asks us to conduct ourselves with dignity and self-control. Paul really spells out what he thinks God wants us to do in exacting measures, and lets us know that this is the new law. If we follow the spirit, our actions will follow, and we won't be breaking God's law. Okay.


So, this is the same thing. I suspect these two readings were picked to go together because Paul is just backing up Jesus here, who keeps saying it over and over and over and over. He gets really mad at the Pharisees and the scholars and the scribes, because they have built their lives around God's law and biblical law, but they don't bother to move beyond the technicalities of the law and try to actually worship and love God. It keeps coming back to honoring the spirit of the law vs the letter of the law.

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Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time  

Posted by siouxbhoney



On the day of 14 October
Today is the feast day of Saint Callistus I, who was born a slave and grew to become a Pope. He is most renowned for the reconciliation of sinners, who following a period of penance, were re-admitted to communion with the Church. He was a martyr for the faith.


Saint/Feast of the day copied from the USCCB web page.



Now I know that when I am confused, I just need to read ahead. Today's reading makes a lot more sense to me than yesterday's, even though Paul is talking about the same thing, isn't he? He wants new Christians to not worry about the old Jewish law. Paul feels that since Christ leveled the playing field to let gentiles in , they don't have to be bound by cultural laws that bound the Jews. Am I getting any closer? Is this why modern Christians can choose to circumcise or not, and don't have to stick to eating kosher foods? Anyone... Anyone?


So, this passage really reinforces Paul's little speech, doesn't it? A lot of the prophets in the Old Testament talk about the observance of the law in action but with no sense of worship behind it. I wonder if this is one of the issues that Jesus, and later Paul, was trying to reform?

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Monday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time - Not of Sound Mind  

Posted by siouxbhoney

On the day of 13 October

St. Edward (1003-1066), called the Confessor, was the grandson of St. Edward, king and martyr, and became king of England at the age of forty-seven. As king he was noted for his gentleness, humility, detachment and angelic purity. He preserved perfect chastity in his wedded life. So little was his heart set on riches that he freely dispensed his goods at the palace gate to the sick and poor. His reign was one of almost continuous peace. The people were prosperous and ruined churches were rebuilt. All spoke affectionately of the wise measures of the "good King Edward." Before the reform of the General Roman Calendar today was his feast.


Also today in Fatima in 1917, the marvelous miracle of the sun took place in the sky before 70,000 witnesses.

**Feast/Saint of the day segment copied from the Catholic Culture website today.

Reading 1: Galatians 4:22-24, 26-27, 31–5:1



This is because I claimed that the letters were getting easier. I don't know. I've read this 5 times. Somebody else can help me. I'm just reprinting both readings, and adding links today.





Brothers and sisters:
It is written that Abraham had two sons,
one by the slave woman and the other by the freeborn woman.
The son of the slave woman was born naturally,
the son of the freeborn through a promise.
Now this is an allegory.
These women represent two covenants.
One was from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery;
this is Hagar.
But the Jerusalem above is freeborn, and she is our mother.
For it is written:
Rejoice, you barren one who bore no children;
break forth and shout, you who were not in labor;
for more numerous are the children of the deserted one
than of her who has a husband.
Therefore, brothers and sisters,
we are children not of the slave woman
but of the freeborn woman.
For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm
and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.




Gospel: Luke 11:29-32

While still more people gathered in the crowd, Jesus said to them,
“This generation is an evil generation;
it seeks a sign, but no sign will be given it,
except the sign of Jonah.
Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites,
so will the Son of Man be to this generation.
At the judgment the queen of the south will rise with the men of this generation
and she will condemn them,
because she came from the ends of the earth
to hear the wisdom of Solomon,
and there is something greater than Solomon here.
At the judgment the men of Nineveh will arise with this generation and condemn it,
because at the preaching of Jonah they repented,
and there is something greater than Jonah here."















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