Gospel of 9th August 2019 - Matthew 25: 1-13

Much attention has been given to the "Letter to Priests" that Pope Francis published on August 4, on the 160th anniversary of the death of St. John Marie Vianney, Curé of Ars.

The pope made it clear he wanted to feel close to priests, at a time when they are often "ridiculed and made to feel guilty for crimes they have not committed."

Above all he thanked them for the care they take for the People of God and encouraged them in the face of their possible feelings of "doubt, fear and lack of trust."

Thirteen million Italians have turned to magicians, fortune tellers, and holistic healers. "When we no longer believe in God, we risk believing everything," British writer Gilbert K. Chesterton once said, prophesying that the secularized and atheistic West would allow itself to be manipulated by holy men, gurus, seers and professionals snake oil peddlers.

There is a high mountain we all must climb with Jesus , one where darkness is banished and brilliant light surrounds the three disciples with Jesus. Here we too rest, struggling with another conundrum, but it is one where an answer is given us. Jesus is seen as he truly is, the mystery of God is caught and glimpsed. Peter grapples with what he sees and is inadequate in his response for he is filled with fear, not trauma, but in mystery and wonder of the unknown God.

This weekend at Mass, Catholics and their friends will hear the denunciation of greed by the Lord Jesus contained in Saint Luke’s Gospel. It’s a hard lesson to hear and an even harder one to take at face value and try to live.

Is the Lord Jesus truly calling his disciples to poverty?

ONE: The importance of the Arabic language.

Unlike any other language, the Arabic language gathered across centuries many dynamics of strengths to sustain its survival. It is the language that was born in the cradle of the oldest alphabet in human history, thus inherited some of the characteristics and attributes of its mothers and sisters of the ancient East and became with the coming of Islam, the Koran language and the vessel of the faith.

Several state officials have ttended the ceremony, including Deputy Premiers Matteo Salvini and Luigi Di Maio, and Rome’s Mayor, Virginia Raggi.

It was an emotional Monday, July 29, for Italians as the funeral for Mario Cerciello Rega, the 35-year-old Carabiniere police officer who was stabbed to death in Rome on Friday, took place at the Santa Maria del Corso church in his hometown of Campania, Somma Vesuviana. Two young American men are currently in jail in relation to homicide, which took place after a drug deal escalated and Rega was stabbed to death 11 times.

Family members of an Italian Jesuit priest who was kidnapped in Syria by members of ISIS in 2013, held a press conference in Rome on Monday, July 29, to mark the anniversary of his disappearance and appeal to international authorities to find answers.

“It’s been six years and we haven’t been able to learn anything,” said Francesca Dall’Oglio, sister of the kidnapped Jesuit, Father Paolo Dall’Oglio, at the Foreign Press Association in Rome, July 29.

“It’s true that he was kidnapped in a war zone, but some areas have now been liberated since November 2017,” she added.

When Jesus’ disciples ask Him to teach them to pray, He gives them much more than simply words to say. How?

Just weeks into President Trump’s first term, David Brody of the Christian Broadcasting Network asked the businessman-turned-politician whether he would make the plight of Christians facing religious persecution abroad a priority of his administration.

“Yes,” Trump said. “They’ve been horribly treated.”

The president spoke about Christians fleeing violence in Syria, concluding: “We are going to help them.”