Fraternity for Saint Francis was not an abstract theory, but a concrete gift from God to each and every person. Even today, the “Poverello” of Assisi reminds us that we cannot truly be brothers and sisters if we do not see ourselves as children of one Father.
Press reports indicated that 51-year-old Fr. Roberto Malgesini, known for being "the priest of the marginalized" and for his devotion to assisting the homeless and migrants in the northern Italian diocese, died in a street near his parish of the Church of St. Rocco after sustaining several stab wounds, including one to the neck, around 7am on September 15.
Fr. Malgesini was the coordinator of a group of priests who help people in difficult situations, namely the homeless and migrants.
Among the sacraments that Christians can joyfully take on daily bases is the Holy Communion, namely the blood and body of Lord Jesus Christ.
The blood of Lord Jesus shed on the Cross saves all those who believe in Him and gives them eternal life. This blood has so incredible valuable to the point that there is nothing in the world that has a perpetual effect on people as the Holy Blood of Jesus does.
This blood is a testimony that salvation is available and that eternal life with the Savior is never denied. It is a fact no one can deny this reality.
Our Lady of Sorrows, Blessed Mary, is marked on September 15.
Devotion to the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady has its roots in Sacred Scripture and in Christian piety, which always associates the Blessed Mother with her suffering Son, Lord Jesus Christ.
The title, Our Lady of Sorrows, given to our Blessed Mother focuses on Her intense suffering and grief during the passion and death of Lord Jesus Christ.
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, celebrated every year on September 14, recalls three historical events, namely the finding of the true Cross by Saint Helena--the mother of Emperor Constantine; the dedication of churches built by Constantine on the site of the Holy Sepulcher and Mount Calvary; and the restoration of the true Cross to Jerusalem by the emperor Heraclius II.
William Blake's poem, 'The Poison Tree' exactly suits my own angry responses, having been taught, mainly by religious figures, to keep my anger in check, like the poet the resentment of having to shut up, put up, and overlook others' wrong doing doesn't always resolve the issue, in fact it can make it so much more worse so the opening verse is so prescient:
I was angry with my friend;
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe:
I told it not, my wrath did grow.
In this week's edition of "Gospel Truth”, the late Jill Bevilacqua and Seán-Patrick Lovett bring us readings and reflections from the Gospel of St. Matthew 18:21-35 of the Twentieth-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.
From the Gospel according to Matthew (MT 18:21-35)
On September 8, we marked the Feast of the Nativity of Blessed Mary. On Saturday, September 12, the world marks the Feast of the Most Holy Name of Blessed Mary.
The Holy Bible sums up the greatness of Blessed Mary saying, "And the name of the virgin was Mary." (Luke, I, 27)
Mary is a name so lofty, so great and so majestic. It is a name as familiar to us as the name of our mothers, as the sunshine, as the beauty of white snow, and as the beauty of nature.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah often said India was not a country, but a subcontinent of nationalities whose leadership should focus on ‘peace within and peace without.’
This is not new. In 1919 Sir Halford Mackinder observed:
“Who rules East Europe commands the Heartland; who rules the Heartland commands the World Island; who rules the World Island commands the World.”
The divine knowledge of a soul is always a merciful knowledge.
We can never be in a true relationship with God until we discover that we are only known mercifully. Not just loved with intermittent mercy after sinning and repenting once again, but that we cannot be looked at, that we cannot be known by God or drawn to him except as a soul in need, poor and destitute, incapable of avoiding collapse and ruin without divine intervention.
