"BLESSED ARE YOU, HOLY VIRGIN MARY, DESERVING OF ALL PRAISE; FROM YOU ROSE THE SUN OF JUSTICE, CHRIST OUR GOD. ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA." (ALLELUIA VERSE).

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:
Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” (Matthew 1: 1 - 16, 18 - 23).

Thursday 8th September 2022 of 23rd Week of Ordinary Time is the great feast of the Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Her birth marks the moment when she who was to conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit and give birth to our Savior, Jesus-Emmanuel was born.

Who is Mary?
Why is her cult so passionate and universal and controversial to non Catholics?

Mary is the Only Child of Saints Joachim and Anne. She is the Mother of Emmanuel, God-with-us, Jesus "who will save his people from their sins."

Mary is the Woman of Genesis 3: 15:
"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers;
They will strike at your head,
while you strike at their heel."
Satan hates Jesus and Mary with a deadly hatred. Satan, the Father of lies had his revenge in the 16th century in the Protestant Reformation.

The Blessed Virgin Mary was held in reverence by the Apostles and disciples in the earliest Christian communities. That may be why so little was said about her in the Gospels. In His mighty, merciful and mysterious Providence, it pleased God to keep Mary hidden for most of her 60 years on earth.

The Mother of Emmanuel was the only person who knew Jesus from womb to tomb. She was always there in the most important moments in the life of Jesus:
* Annunciation.
* Visitation to Elizabeth and Zachary.
* Birth of Jesus in the Manger.
* Visit of the Magi, the 3 kings.
* Presentation in the Temple and the encounter with the Prophet and Prophetess Simeon and Anna.
* The Via Dolorosa (Way of the Cross).
* The Sacrifice of the Lamb of God at Calvary when it pleased the Father to make the Mother of His Son, our Mother through John the Evangelist.
* The Birth of the Church on Pentecost Sunday.

Mary was faithfully there in all the great moments! Accident or Providence? Mary's role in salvation history was planned by the Most Holy Trinity before the beginning of the world.

It is with great joy that we honor Mary on her Birthday. Happy Birthday Mother. We your children love you very much. We join all the generations that have called you blessed to hail you:
Holy Mary full of grace, the fruit of your womb, Jesus is blessed forever! 🌹🌹🌹🎂❤️

Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com

"THE FRUIT OF PRAYER IS A DEEPENING OF FAITH, AND THE FRUIT OF FAITH IS LOVE; AND THE FRUIT OF LOVE IS SERVICE, IN WHATEVER FORM, EVEN IN OUR FAMILY. LOVE BEGINS AT HOME." (ST MOTHER TERESA OF KOLKATA).

"On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered. The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him.

"But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up and stand before us.” And he rose and stood there.

"Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”

"Looking around at them all, he then said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored. But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus." (Luke 6: 6 - 11).

Monday 5th September 2022  of the 23rd Week of Ordinary Time is the feast day of the Saint of Mercy, St Mother Teresa of Kolkata. It is also Labor Day in the USA.

The Church celebrates today the feast of St Teresa of Kolkata (1910 - 1997). Founder of the Missionaries of Charity.

Mother St Teresa was the founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity, a congregation of women dedicated to helping the poor. The Missionaries of Charity is considered one of the 20th Century's greatest humanitarian organization. Mother was canonized as Saint Teresa of Kolkata on September 4th 2016 by Pope Francis. Among her many international awards is the Nobel Peace Prize.

"By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, an Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus." (St Teresa of Kolkata).

The Gospel of today is another Sabbath controversy which Jesus seems to relish. A good subject for reflection on Labor Day.

St Teresa of Kolkata and the Missionaries of Charity serve the Poorest of the Poor. Is labor organized to serve the poor or the rich?

For the opponents of Jesus, almost no work is permitted on the Sabbath. For many in the USA, work on Sunday is not an option.

On this point, Jesus asked them:
“I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”

The scribes and Pharisees refused to answer the question. Jesus then turned to the man with the withered hand and said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored."

On Labor Day, we remember that God commanded man to work in order to participate in the work of creation. Like the scribes and Pharisees, there is always a great temptation for the people that control work to exclude the poor when it comes to benefits.

May the work we do contribute to real progress on earth and the growth of the Kingdom of God.

"If you would serve My Father, serve Me, especially in the weakest and poorest members of My Mystical Body. Whatsoever you do unto them, you do unto Me, and what is done unto Me becomes an offering pleasing in My Father’s sight." (Saturday, February 9, 2008).

Lord Jesus, bless and prosper the work of our hands.

Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com

"FASTING GIVES BIRTH TO PROPHETS AND STRENGTHENS THE POWERFUL; FASTING MAKES LAWGIVERS WISE. FASTING IS A SAFEGUARD FOR THE SOUL.... FASTING REPELS TEMPTATIONS... " (ST BASIL THE GREAT).

"The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus, “The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers, and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same; but yours eat and drink.” Jesus answered them, “Can you make the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them, then they will fast in those days.” (Luke 5: 33.... 39).

Friday 2nd September 2022 of the 22nd Week of Ordinary Time is also First Friday of September.

The Gospel of today deals with fasting. Fasting, Prayer and Almsgiving are the 3 pillars of Christian spiritual life.
Do you fast? How often? What do you fast from?

On the three pillars of the spiritual life, the Church teaches:

CCC 1434: "The interior penance of the Christian can be expressed in many and various ways. Scripture and the Fathers insist above all on three forms, fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, which express conversion in relation to oneself, to God, and to others. Alongside the radical purification brought about by Baptism or martyrdom they cite as means of obtaining forgiveness of sins: efforts at reconciliation with one’s neighbor, tears of repentance, concern for the salvation of one’s neighbor, the intercession of the saints, and the practice of charity “which covers a multitude of sins.”

As for the concern of the scribes and the Pharisees with regard to the fasting and prayers of Jesus and His disciples, Jesus has a short answer for His challengers:
"New wine must be poured into fresh wineskins." (Luke 5: 38). Meaning: Open your eyes and see. I am doing New Things!

"I am the light of the world, says the Lord; anyone who follows me will have the light of life." (John 8: 12)

Some Christians abstain from meat and alcohol on Friday and Wednesday. Others abstain also from television, movies and gambling. Fasting and abstinence are not options for a Christian. They are signs of a mature faith.

"The prayer of adoration at night has the power and efficacy of that prayer made with fasting that I recommended to My apostles as the means of expelling demons from the souls whom they torture and oppress. For this reason, the demons fear and hate adoration made at night, while the angels rejoice over it, and place themselves at the service of the soul who desires to do it." (IN SINU JESU page 240).

Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com