Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, December 16, 2011

The habitual difficulty in prayer is distraction...To set about hunting down distractions would be to fall into their trap, when all that is necessary is to turn back our heart: for a distraction reveals to us what we are attached to.
- CCC No. 2729

Reflection: The thoughts that come to distract our prayers can tell us much about ourselves and reveal where our heart lies. We can sanctify these thoughts when we offer them up to the Father along with our prayers.


Prayer: Holy Spirit, inspire single-minded focus in our prayers.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, December 15, 2011

Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part. It always presupposes effort. The great figures of prayer...all teach us this: prayer is a battle. Against whom? Against ourselves and against the wiles of the tempter who does all he can to turn man away from prayer, away from union with God.
- CCC No. 2725

Reflection: Anything of value must be protected. So it is with the divine life. We must fight for it with vigilance against enemies with-out and enemies within.


Prayer: Jesus, strengthen our spiritual will.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, December 07, 2011

Beginning with Mary's unique cooperation with the working of the Holy Spirit, the Churches developed their prayer to the holy Mother of God, centering it on the person of Christ manifested in his mysteries.
CCC No. 2675

Reflection: All Marian prayers, the Hail Mary, the Rosary, the Angelus, etc., find their center of gravity in Jesus and the mystery of his life. The placement of his sacred name and the meditation on his life provoked by Marian prayers gives them a Christocentric focus which Mary herself desires.


Prayer: Mary, reveal to us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, November 25, 2011

By prayer of petition we express awareness of our relationship with God. We are creatures who are not our own beginning, not the masters of adversity, not our own last end.
CCC No. 2629

Reflection: There are those who feel that prayers of petition are somehow selfish or lacking the fullness of devotion for God that praise and adoration express, and yet, petition is an important manifestation of our own sense of right relationship to God, our need for his help, and our faith in his love for us.


Prayer: Lord, help us to value you above all the gifts you give us.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, November 21, 2011

The Gospel reveals to us how Mary prays and intercedes in faith. At Cana, the mother of Jesus asks her son for the needs of a wedding feast; this is the sign of another feast--that of the wedding of the Lamb where he gives his body and blood at the request of the Church, his Bride.
- CCC No. 2618

Reflection: In the wedding at Cana, Scripture shows us both Mary's intercessory power with her son and her ultimate message to those serving Christ, "Do whatever he tells you."


Prayer: Mary, pray to your Son for us.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer Friday, November 18, 2011

"Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive it, and you will." Such is the power of prayer and of faith that does not doubt: "all things are possible to him who believes."
- CCC No. 2610

Reflection: Faith is the key that unlocks the door to all our truest desires; but faith is not just praying with more strength or willpower. Mountain-moving faith is the result of a long and loving relationship with our God, to the point of sharing in the trust that exists between the Father and the Son.


Prayer: Lord Jesus, increase our faith!





From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, November 09, 2011

The arguments of [Moses'] prayer...will inspire the boldness of the great intercessors among the Jewish people and in the Church; God is love; he is therefore righteous and faithful; he cannot contradict himself; he must remember his marvelous deeds, since his glory is at stake, and he cannot forsake this people that bears his name.
- CCC No. 2577

Reflection: Moses' intercession starts with God, not with the people he is interceding for. Moses urges God to intercede not primarily for the people's sake, but for God's sake, the sake of his name and holiness.


Prayer: Lord, remember your love for your people.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, November 07, 2011

Abraham's first prayer in words [is] a veiled complaint reminding God of his promises which seem unfulfilled. Thus one aspect of the drama of prayer appears from the beginning: the test of faith in the fidelity of God.
- CCC No. 2570

Reflection: The harsh reality of unanswered prayer is neither a sign that we are unworthy nor proof that God does not exist; it is part of the mystery of the relationship between God and man. To give up when our prayers are not answered is to treat God like an out-of-order vending machine.


Prayer: Lord, hear our prayer.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, November 04, 2011

In the New Covenant, prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their Father who is good beyond measure, with his Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Spirit...Thus, the life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and in communion with him.
- CCC No. 2565

Reflection: To get used to the company of the people we live and work with takes time. The same is true of our relationship with God. We need to pray often to become comfortable in God's company.


Prayer: Holy Trinity, make a home in our homes.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer Monday, October 31, 2011

Desire for true happiness frees man from his immoderate attachment to the goods of this world so that he can find his fulfillment in the vision and beatitude of God.
- CCC No. 2548

Reflection: Once you taste the true joy of the spiritual life and compare it with the passing happiness of transitory things, the commandments aren't as difficult. Lying, cheating, stealing, and adultery seem like an awful lot of trouble for anything less than true happiness.


Prayer: Jesus, teach us to desire true happiness.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, October 24, 2011

By its very nature, lying is to be condemned. It is a profanation of speech, whereas the purpose of speech is to communicate known truth to others.
- CCC No. 2485

Reflection: The Catechism suggests that the whole point of speech organs is to pass on the truth to others. This does not rule out humor, son, or story, for the best of these contain deep abiding truths.


Prayer: Lord, may we always speak the truth in love.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, October 20, 2011

Sexuality, in which man's belonging to the bodily and biological world is expressed, becomes personal and truly human when it is integrated into the relationship of one person to another, in the complete and lifelong mutual gift of a man and a woman.
- CCC No. 2337

Reflection: The sixth commandment ("You shall not commit adultery") protects the divine image in man, for to have sexual relations outside of marriage, that is, apart from a lifelong, exclusive relationship of one man and one woman, is an act that is offensive to the dignity of marriage and a grave sin.


Prayer: Father, teach us how to honor our bodies.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Everyone is responsible for his life before God who has given it to him. It is God who remains the sovereign Master of life...We are the Stewards, not owners, of the life God has entrusted to us. It is not our to dispose of.
- CCC No. 2280

Reflection: The fifth commandment forbids suicide and other self-destructive and risky behavior. A culture that does not respect all forms of life will soon be a culture in which no life is sacred, even one's own.


Prayer: Lord, help us to form a culture of life in our world.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, October 06, 2011

The fifth precept ("You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church") means that the faithful are obliged to assist with the material needs of the Church, each according to his own ability.
- CCC No. 2043

Reflection: As more and more lay people take roles in the Church, there is less free labor in the form of priests and sisters to serve the people of God. This makes it more important than ever that parishioners support their parish "according to their ability."


Prayer: Father, make me a cheerful giver to the work of the Church.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, October 05,

The fourth precept ("You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church") ensures the times of ascesis and penance which prepare us for the liturgical feasts and help us acquire mastery over our instincts and freedom of heart.
- CCC No. 2043

Reflection: The fourth precept also underscores the importance of the Easter season and that we ought to prepare for it. The return of the Lenten fast is a yearly examination of our life and a chance to improve ourselves to better serve the risen Christ.


Prayer: Lord of the desert, help us to make use of the season of Lent.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, October 04, 2011

The third precept ("You shall receive the sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter season") guarantees as minimum the reception of the Lord's Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian liturgy.
- CCC No. 2042

Reflection: Notice how the Church separates the reception of communion (at least once a year) from attending Mass (every week). Two points follow: first, we must be prepared to receive communion, and even if we aren't we still need to gather with the Church.


Prayer: Lord Jesus, sanctify your Church by the gift of the Eucharist.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, September 29, 2011

From generation to generation, under the aegis and vigilance of the pastors, the "deposit" of Christian moral teaching has been handed on, a deposit composed of a characteristic body of rules, commandments, and virtues proceeding from faith in Christ and animated by charity.
- CCC No. 2033

Reflection: We can't figure this all out on our own in the small amount of time we've been given--we're not supposed to. That's why the Church preserves the wisdom of the saints and the teachings of the Bible for each generation to learn from and to add to it.


Prayer: Lord, raise up teachers for your Church.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, September 22, 2011

The natural law is a participation in God's wisdom and goodness by man formed in the image of his Creator. It expresses the dignity of the human person and forms the basis of his fundamental rights and duties.
- CCC No. 1978

Reflection: Being in God's image we have an innate sense of right and wrong which does not change from time to time or person to person but is fundamental to beings made in God's image, for it is based upon the nature of who God is.


Prayer: Father, open our eyes to see the wonders of your law.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, September 19, 2011

Authority is exercised legitimately only when it seeks the common good of the group concerned and if it employs morally licit means to attain it. If rulers were to enact unjust laws or take measures contrary to the moral order, such arrangements would not be binding in conscience.
- CCC No. 1903

Reflection: Although the Catechism, following the Bible, directs Christians to be obedient to those in authority, it is careful to point out that one need not remain under an unjust authority.

Prayer: Lord, inspire leaders to desire the good for those in charge.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, September 16, 2011

To promote the participation of the greatest number in the life of a society, the creation of voluntary associations and institutions must be encouraged "on both national and international levels, which relate to the economic and social goals, to cultural and recreational activities, to sport, to various professions, and to political affairs."
- CCC No. 1882

Reflection: Just as animals gather in herds or flocks, so human beings are meant to form groups. Whether it is softball leagues or the museum society, human beings are meant to be joiners.


Prayer: Lord, strengthen the bonds of the body of Christ.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Sin creates a proclivity to sin; it engenders vice by repetition of the same acts. This results in perverse inclinations which cloud conscience and corrupt the concrete judgment of good and evil. Thus sin tends to reproduce itself and reinforce itself, but it cannot destroy the moral sense at its root.
- CCC No. 1865

Reflection: Just as virtue is habitual, so sin becomes a default setting for those who are not vigilant enough to guard against it. It is easy to go downhill, and few things are easier than to sink slowly, imperceptibly into vice and addiction.


Prayer: Lord, save us from our own evil inclinations.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Venial sin weakens charity; it manifests a disordered affection for created goods; it impedes the soul's progress in the exercise of the virtues and the practice of the moral good; it merits temporal punishment.
- CCC No. 1863

Reflection: We should always prefer God to the things he has created. But as we drift away from God, we become more and more self-centered and our desires slide lower and lower on the scale until mere things become more important to us than even the people we love.


Prayer: Father, help us to prefer you over everything else.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Temperance...ensures the will's mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable. The temperate person directs the sensitive appetites toward what is good and maintains a healthy discretion.
- CCC No. 1809

Reflection: The ancients spoke of "leisure with dignity," acknowledging the difficulty inherent in the human experience of fulfilling our desires without being controlled by them. Temperance controls and directs our freedom so that we can reach our full potential.


Prayer: Lord, strengthen us until we are stronger even than our own desires.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, September 02, 2011

Four virtues play a pivotal role and accordingly are called "cardinal"; all the others are grouped around them. They are: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.
- CCC No1805

Reflection: The ancient philosophers who lived long before Christ articulated four commands for those who wanted to live a virtuous (i.e., strong) life: be wise, be fair, be brave, be self-controlled. The Church has always confirmed the wisdom of these counsels.


Prayer: Spirit of God, strengthen us to live the cardinal virtues.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, September 01, 2011

A virtue is a habitual and firm disposition to do the good. It allows the person not only to perform good acts, but to give the best of himself. The virtuous person tends toward the good with all his sensory and spiritual powers; he pursues the good and chooses it in concrete actions.
- CCC No. 1803

Reflection: The virtuous are in the habit of choosing correctly, until one day it is just natural for them to do the right thing. For the virtuous person, doing good is the default setting.


Prayer: Holy Spirit, set our hearts on fire with a love of holy wisdom.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, August 30, 2011

A human being must always obey the certain judgment of his conscience. If he were deliberately to act against it, he wold condemn himself. Yet it can happen that moral conscience remains in ignorance and makes erroneous judgments about acts to be performed or already committed.
- CCC No. 1790

Reflection: The Church insists that we must follow our conscience but it never says that our conscience is always right. Without a mastery of our will and cultivation of our reason and intellect, the judgment of our conscience can be wrong.


Prayer: Holy Spirit, help us to know the truth.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, August 29, 2011

It IS important for every person to be sufficiently present to himself in order to hear and follow the voice of his conscience. This requirement of "interiority" is all the more necessary as life often distracts us from any reflection, self-examination or introspection.
- CCC No. 1779

Reflection: The ability to "be present to ourselves" is especially difficult in today's society. True silence is rare, and solitude is usually avoided, and yet the saints have always held up solitude and silence as the surest paths to union with God.


Prayer: Jesus, lead us to know our true selves.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, July 25, 2011

Two other sacraments, Holy Orders and Matrimony, are directed towards the salvation of others; if they contribute as well to personal salvation, it is through service to others that they do so.
- CCC No. 1534

Reflection: In Marriage the spouses minister to each other in a priestly fashion. In Holy Orders, the Priest loves the faithful with the sacrificial love of a spouse. Both states are similar in their demand to pour oneself out for others.


Prayer: Father, give us the courage to give ourselves totally to others.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, July 21, 2011

Jesus has the power not only to heal, but also to forgive sins; he has come to heal the whole man, soul and body; he is the physician the sick have need of.
- CCC No. 1505

Reflection: We often think of Jesus as healer only in spiritual terms, but Jesus is concerned with our whole bodies. During his time on earth he practiced a very "holistic" healing approach, healing mind and body. We must still see him this way.


Prayer: Jesus, be the true healer for all the suffering and sick.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Illness and suffering have always been among the gravest problems confronted in human life. In illness, man experiences his powerlessness, his limitations, and his finitude. Every illness can make us glimpse death.
- CCC No. 1500

Reflection: In the throes of a painful illness we are tormented with the knowledge that when we were healthy, we didn't appreciate it--hardly realizing how blessed is the state of health. This same experience will be repeated in the moment after death when we realize how much for granted we took the state of life.


Prayer: Lord, help us to see how short and fragile our life is!

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, July 18, 2011

To the eyes of faith no evil is graver than sin and nothing has worse consequence for sinners themselves, for the Church, and for the whole world.
- CCC No. 1488

Reflection: All pain is a trial, but pain caused by deliberate malicious actions is almost unbearable to the human psyche, because it brings, along with grief, a sense of horror and fear. And every intentional act of wrongdoing we commit, however small, spreads abroad in a cosmic way, some degree of fear and grief.


Prayer: Lord, by your grace and the life of your divine Son, heal the world of the pain cause by our sin.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, July 01, 2011

In the Eucharist, the sacrifice of Christ becomes also the sacrifice of the members of his body.
- CCC No. 1368

Reflection: Every Christian is to be a martyr and a hero, daily sacrificing oneself for others: being kind, bearing wrongs patiently, letting go of anger, giving in, putting others above self. This type of sacrifice is pleasing to the Father and ascends to him each Sunday during the Eucharistic prayer along with the perfect sacrifice of Christ.


Prayer: Jesus, help us to live a life worthy of your name, and pleasing to you in every way.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Thursday, June 30, 2011

The miracles of the multiplication of the loaves, when the Lord says the blessing, breaks and distributes the loaves through his disciples to feed the multitude, prefigure the superabundance of this unique bread of his Eucharist.
- CCC No.1335

Reflection: Upon finally grasping the reality of what it means to eat Jesus' body and blood, one teenager exclaimed, "It must have been a big body!" The multiplication of the loaves explains God's fecundity and how we are able to continually feed on the true body of Christ.


Prayer: Lord, help me to have a firmer faith in the Eucharist.


From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Faithful to the Lord's command the Church continues to do, in his memory and until his glorious return, what he did on the eve of his Passion: "He took bread..." "he took the cup filled with wine..."
- CCC No. 1333

Reflection: The weekly ritual of the Mass may seem awkward or inconvenient, but unlike most of the ways in which we spend our lives, it is not a consumer's decision; it is an act of obedience to the Lord's words.


Prayer: Lord, may the Church always remain faithful to your words at the Last Supper.


From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, June 07, 2011

The Church, especially during Advent and Lent and above all during the Easter Vigil, re-reads and re-lives he great events of salvation history in the "today" of her liturgy.
- CCC No. 1095

Reflection: The liturgy celebrates God's saving activity of the past, which is essentially the same as his present behavior. God is always/still saving mankind and intervening in history. In the liturgical celebration, past and present meet in God's ever-present "today."


Prayer: Father, your love is unchanging and your faithfulness never fails. Accept our praise this day.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, June 01, 2011

The word "liturgy" originally meant a "public work" or a "service in the name of/on behalf of the people." In Christian tradition it means the participation of the People of God in "the work of God."
- CCC No. 1069

Reflection: To sit in the pew passively daydreaming during Mass is like a soccer player standing around on the soccer field, oblivious of the game going on around her, and then later saying, "I got nothing out of it."


Prayer: Father, thank you for the opportunity to worship you at Mass.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, May 31, 2011

[At the end of time] the beatific vision, in which God opens himself in an inexhaustible way to the elect, will be the ever-flowing well-spring of happiness, peace, and mutual communion.
- CCC No. 1045

Reflection: This is heaven: total access to God in mutual self-giving that is overflowing with happiness and peace. Not a series of ups and downs, but a sustained joy like we've never experienced before.


Prayer: Father, may all our earthly joys be pure and healthy and inspire us to strive more boldly for the promise of heaven.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Wednesday, May 25, 2011

What is essentially new about Christian death is this: through Baptism, the Christian has already "died with Christ" sacramentally, in order to live a new life; and if we die in Christ's grace, physical death completes this "dying with Christ" and so completes our incorporation into him in his redeeming act.
CCC No. 1010

Reflection: For the Christian, death and eternal life begin at Baptism, and they work themselves out side by side throughout our entire lives.


Prayer: Lord, help us to stay close to you, for all our time is tied up with the reality of you.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Death seems like th enormla end of life. That aspect of death lends urgency to our lives: remembering our mortality helps us to realize that we have only a limited time in which to bring our lives to fulfillment.
- CCC No. 1007


Reflection: To honestly accept the fact that our days are numbered: to think about the date on which you will no longer be living; to wrestle with the reality of death, judgment, heaven, and hell is an extremely practical way to live.


Prayer: Lord, help us to face how fragile and finite our life really is.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Monday, May 23, 2011

Christ will raise us up "on the last day"; but is is also true that, in a certain way, we have already risen with Christ.
- CCC No. 1002

Reflection: The life of the Christian is "already but not yet." The work of Christ on our behalf is finished and in so many ways we experience that victory, but our earthly trials continue to bring us to our knees. We live with one foot on earth and one in heaven.

Prayer: Jesus, help us to move beyond the limits of this earthly life to experience, even now, the graces you have won for us.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Friday, May 20, 2011

We firmly believe, and hence we hope that, just as Christ is truly risen from the dead and lives forever, so after death the righteous will live for ever with the risen Christ and he will raise them up on the last day.
- CCC No. 989

Reflection: It is not easy to "firmly believe" in the resurrection of the dead, and yet, if Christ did not rise from the dead, then we do not rise from the dead, in which case our faith is a joke and we are pathetic--as Paul himself pointed out.


Prayer: Lord, we do believe, but help and heal our unbelief.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection & Prayer for Tuesday, May 17, 2011

In this battle against our inclination towards evil, who could be brave and watchful enough to escape every wound of sin?
- CCC No. 979

Reflection: Forgiveness and reconciliation are powerful sources of healing to the human spirit and psyche, but in order to receive their benefits we must admit our sins and explicitly ask for pardon. The stage for this beautiful and necessary human drama is the confessional.

 Prayer: Father, draw your wandering children back to you. May we embrace the healing and strength you offer us through the sacrament of Reconciliation.


From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, September 21, 2010

From the outset of the work of evangelization, the missionary "planting" and expansion of the Church require the presence of the religious life in all its forms.
- CCC No. 927

Reflection: Ours is an age of diversity and inclusiveness, but the Church, from her very beginnings, has always provided a multitude of ways to serve God--lay and consecrated, active, contemplative, in the city or in the desert, in community or in solitude.


Prayer: Father, may your spirit equip us to serve you according to our state of life.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, May 09, 2011

Hidden from the eyes of men, the life of the hermit is a silent preaching of the Lord, to whom he has surrendered his life simply because he is everything to him. Here is a particular call to find in the desert, in the thick of spiritual battle, the glory of the Crucified One.
- CCC No. 921

Reflection: All Christians can benefit from periodic practice of the disciplines of the hermit's life: solitude, silence, withdrawal from public life, and intense prayer.


Prayer: Lord, may the pattern of our lives allow us to hear you speaking in the depths of our hearts.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Friday, May 06, 2011

And so, worshiping everywhere by their holy actions, the laity consecrate the world itself to God, everywhere offering worship by the holiness of their lives.
- CCC No. 901

Reflection: Christians hold the power to sanctify their corner of the world simply by living a holy life. Like a sort of spiritual Midas, everything they touch, all that they influence, becomes consecrated to God.


Prayer: Father, never let us forget the power of holiness to change the world.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Thursday, May 05, 2011

All [the laity's] works, prayers, and apostolic undertakings, family and married life, daily work, relaxation of mind and body, if they are accomplished in the Spirit...all these become spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
- CCC No. 901

Reflection: Catholics learn from an early age to "offer up" their trials and sufferings, but in truth, every action of our lives can and should be "offered up" to God.


Prayer: Father, may every area of our lives be a pleasing sacrifice to you.





From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Wednesday, May 04, 2011

Hence the laity, dedicated as they are to Christ and anointed by the Holy Spirit, are marvellously called and prepared so that even richer fruits of the Spirit may be produced in them.
- CCC No. 901

Reflection: Gone are the days when Christians believed that only priests and religious were meant to pursue a holy life. Indeed, the Catechism suggests that by virtue of the gifts given them, the laity are perhaps even better suited to bear spiritual fruit.


Prayer: Father of all the faithful, strengthen the faith of the laity.





From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, May 03, 2011

[The laity's] activity in ecclesial communities is so necessary that, for the most part, the apostolate of the pastors cannot be fully effective without it.
- CCC No. 900

Reflection: Everyone talks about the priest shortage, but what about the laity shortage? The failure to participate in Sunday Mass and Parish life by "non-practicing" Catholics constitutes another sort of crisis, one that seriously hampers the work of the priests we do have.


Prayer: Lord, may all the baptized hear and know your voice and seek you in the community of the faithful.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, May 02, 2011

By reason of their special vocation it belongs to the laity to seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God's will.
CCC No. 898

Reflection: Many factors go into choosing a career. Alongside issues of salary, location and personal fulfillment, it should also be asked how one will seek God in this chosen line of work and in what manner one will direct that work according to God's will.


Prayer: Father, bless the work of our hands that it may honor you and give you glory.



From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Friday, April 29, 2011

"The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."
- CCC No. 841

Reflection: When we look at Muslims we see much that is good: a deep reverence for the God of Abraham, their dedication to prayer and self-sacrifice, and their desire to serve God with their entire lives.


Prayer: Father, salvation belongs to you alone. Be merciful when you judge my neighbor and my enemy.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Thursday, April 28, 2011

When she delves into her own mystery, the Church, the People of God in the New Covenant, discovers her link with the Jewish People.
- CCC No. 839

Reflection: It is a great embarrassment and tragedy to think of Christians being involved in anti-Semitism when in fact our salvation is so intimately bound up with God's first covenant people, whose very identity Christ chose for himself in his Incarnation.


Prayer: Jesus, Son of David, give me a special love for people of your race, my Jewish brothers and sisters.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, April 26, 2011

All members of the Church, including her ministers, must acknowledge that they are sinners.
- CCC No. 827

Reflection: What could be more difficult than living in the constant tension of striving to be holy, but admitting that we are sinners? It is a tightrope walk between arrogance and discouragement. The virtues of faith, hope and love show us the middle way and the best way.


Prayer: Father of all truth, help us to see ourselves as we truly are, and to rise above the limits of our human condition.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, April 25, 2011

The desire to recover the unity of all Christians is a gift of Christ and a call of the Holy Spirit.
- CCC No. 820

Reflection: Christ desires all Christians to be united, and the Holy Spirit wants to lead us in that direction. A return to full Christian unity will require us to soften our hearts toward each other, spend time together, learn about each other, dialogue openly, and most importantly, pray together.


Prayer: Spirit of unity and peace, soften our hearts to reach out to our Christian brothers and sisters.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Wednesday, April 20, 2011

The comparison of the Church with the body casts light on the intimate bond between Christ and his Church. Not only is she gathered around him; she is united in him, in his body.
- CCC No. 789

Reflection: Keep in mind that we are not only Christians, we are Christ. This is why knowing Christ is so important, for only when we come to a deep relationship with Christ do we come into contact with our true selves as we were meant to be.


Prayer: Lord, in knowing you, may we come to know ourselves better.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Jesus proclaimed a mysterious and real communion between his own body and ours; "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him."
- CCC No. 787

Reflection: Catholics hold a great reverence for Christ in the Eucharist. But that solemn reverence should extend to our own bodies and to our fellow Catholics as well. In communion, we partake of the divine nature, and become one with the host we reverence.


Prayer: Jesus Christ, help me to honor you in me, and in my neighbor.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Wednesday, April 13, 2011

God created the world for the sake of communion with his divine life, a communion brought about by the "convocation" of men in Christ, and this convocation" is the Church.
- CCC No. 760

Reflection: God's perfect will desires that all things be in total communion with him, yet our free will allows us to accept or reject God's offer. In the Church we find those who have answered Christ's call to full and perfect unity with God.


Prayer: Father, strengthen the bonds by which the Church is united to you.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, April 05, 2011

While water signifies birth and the fruitfulness of life given in the Holy Spirit, fire symbolizes the transforming energy of the Holy Spirit's actions...who transforms what he touches.
- CCC No. 696

Reflection: The elements of creation are also highly symbolic of our relationship with God. When the Holy Spirit manifests itself in tongues of flame, it represents the transforming power, the light and the warmth of God's love for us.


Prayer: Father, send the fire of your spirit deep within us to transform our lives and to conform them to you.




From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Since the Ascension God's plan has entered into its fulfillment. We are already at "the last hour."
- CCC No. 670

Reflection: There is a great deal of speculation about whether or not we are living in "the end times," but, in fact, the Church still proclaims what the first followers of Jesus knew, that the "end of the age" began with the Ascension of Christ and will continue until his return.


Prayer: Lord Jesus, help us to prepare for your return with a spirit of joyful hope.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Friday, March 25, 2011

Jesus Christ, the head of the Church, precedes us into the Father's glorious kingdom so that we, the members of his Body, may live in the hope of one day being with him for ever.
- CCC No. 666

Reflection: The Ascension---not the Resurrection---is the real source of our hope. If Jesus' Resurrection only mean living forever on earth, that would not be good news! The Ascension points us to our ultimate destiny beyond this earth.


Prayer: Jesus, help us to lift our eyes beyond the borders of this earthly life to our eternal destiny with you.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Thursday, March 24, 2011

All truths, even those most inaccessible to human reason, find their justification if Christ by his Resurrection has given the definitive proof of his divine authority, which he had promised.
- CCC No. 651

Reflection: By his resurrection from the dead, Christ "earned our trust" so to speak, so that we may embrace even the most difficult of his teachings. It makes no sense to believe the Resurrection but question his power to work miracles, the Eucharist, or hard teaching like "love your enemies."

Prayer: Lord, let the truth of your Resurrection take root in our hearts.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, March 22, 2011

By means of touch and the sharing of a meal, the risen Jesus establishes direct contact with his disciples...yet at the same time this authentic, real body possesses the new properties of a glorious body: not limited by space and time but able to be present how and when he wills.
- CCC No. 645

Reflection: The resurrected Jesus, as he is presented in the Gospels, defies human definition. This is not a ghost, not a dream or an apparition.


Prayer: Resurrected Christ, we acknowledge your presence among us. Remain with us always.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, March 21, 2011

The mystery of Christ's resurrection is a real event, with manifestations that were historically verified, as the New Testament bears witness.
- CCC No. 639

Reflection: A real live human being was killed and then rose from the dead. This is not a myth or symbol. Jesus didn't return as a ghost, or merely live on as an inspirational memory. He really rose from the dead. The more honestly we wrestle with that, the more firmly we will believe it.


Prayer: Jesus, help me to really know you and to experience the power of your resurrection.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Tuesday, March 15, 2011

From the first moment of his Incarnation the Son embraces the Father's plan of divine salvation in his redemptive mission: "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work."
- CCC No. 606

Reflection: In the Gospel portrait of Jesus, we see a man on a mission. From the moment of his baptism to his death on the cross Jesus remains focused on fulfilling God's plan for him.


Prayer: Lord, help us to overcome all that distracts us to that we may focus on and never waver from our goal to serve you.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, March 14, 2011

To God, all moments of time are present in their immediacy. When therefore he establishes his eternal plan of "predestination," he includes in it each person's free response to his grace.
- CCC No. 600

Reflection: God has so much respect for us that first he lets us make our own choice in response to his activity, then works out his loving plan, never allowing our mistakes and sins to thwart his great design.


Prayer: Father, give us wisdom to know your will and strength to carry it out, for in your will is our peace.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Wednesday, March 09, 2011 (Ash Wednesday)

The ashes we use are the burnt palms from last year's celebration of Passion Sunday.
We begin our Lenten journey aware of where we are going.
We want to enter into the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus for us more fully.
That is the purpose of our journey. It is why we mark our heads with his cross.
It is why we fast today and abstain from meat.


Our Lenten program is not an effort to save ourselves.
We have been saved by his sacrifice.
Our self-denial helps us, in the darkness that surrounds us,
to prepare ourselves to receive his light.
For this is a journey to the Easter font,
where we will renew the promises of our Baptism,
remembering that in dying with him in the waters of Baptism,
we are re-born with him to everlasting life.


This year's journey begins today.

Yet even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting, and weeping, and mourning;

Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.

- Joel 2:12-13

Source

Scripture, Reflection and Prayer for Monday, March 07, 2011

Christ enables us to live in him all that he himself lived, and he lives it in us.
- CCC No. 521

Reflection: The imitation of Christ is the goal of every Christian. But we are meant to be more than just actors, mimicking Christ. We are to be channels, animated by Christ himself, as he lives his life in us. His triumphs, sufferings, his glory and all the graces he possessed, he shares with us when we die to self and allow him to live in us.


Prayer: Thank you for dying for me, dear Jesus. May I live for you. May you live in me.

From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)