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Saint Luke - Above all seek the Kingdom of God and Its Justice
Saint Luke - Above all seek the Kingdom of God and Its Justice
Saint Luke - Above all seek the Kingdom of God and Its Justice
 
 
 
 

 
 

Holy Trinity by Szymon Czechowicz (1689-1775); 1756-58; Lithuanian Art Museum, Vilnius, Lithuania; commons.wikimedia.org
 
 
Saint Cyril of Alexandria (376-444), Homily 62 regarding the Gospel of Saint Luke, Chapter 12, Verse 31
(R.R. Tonneau: CSCO t. 70, 160-164)

Above all seek the kingdom of God and Its Justice 1

Upon hearing these words, what conclusions are the disciples to make and what practical decisions are they to adopt?

For certain, these: they are to abandon into the hands of God the preoccupation for their sustenance, and remember what Saint Luke said: Commend to God your desires, as He will sustain you.

Yes, He gives most generously to His Saints what they need for life, and certainly does not lie when Saint Luke continues: Do not be weighed down by life thinking what you are going to eat, nor by the body thinking on what you are going to wear - your Father in heaven already knows that you have need of all these.

Above all seek the Kingdom of God and Its justice; the rest will be given to you in addition.

It was extremely useful - and even necessary - that those who were invested in apostolic dignity would also have a soul liberated from the appetite for riches and would abhor nothing more than the accumulation of donations, being content instead with what God would proportion to them; just as it is written: covetousness is the root of all evils.

It was therefore propitious that at all costs they maintain themselves at the margins and fully liberated from that vice, which is the root and mother of all evils. Rather, they were to exhaust all of their diligence in truly necessary occupations: in not falling under the yoke of Satan.

In this manner, walking at the fringes of worldly preoccupations, undervaluing carnal appetites and desiring only what God wants.

And just like the most experienced and courageous soldiers, upon leaving for battle, who do not carry with them any other thing than the arms they need for war, the same as with those who Christ sent off for help while He was on Earth, and then to assume the fight afterwards, for the benefit of those in danger, against the powers that dominate this world of darkness; moreover, in the battle against Satan himself in person.

For this it was necessary that they maintain themselves free from the fatigues of this world and of all worldly concerns so that, lean and with the spiritual arms at hand, they could fight bravely against those who block the glory of Christ and who sow ruin throughout the entire earth; lamentable events which induced her inhabitants to adore the creature in place of the Creator and to offer worship to the elements of the world.

Have fitted the Breastplate of Faith, placed the Shield of Justice, and by the Sword of the Holy Spirit, all of these, the Word of God.

With these munitions it was inevitable that they would be intolerable for their enemies, and out in the world, carrying nothing worthy of stain or culpability; specifically, the ambition to possess, amass illicit gains and to carry themselves preoccupied in their upkeep; things which separate the human soul from a life pleasing to God.

Nor do they allow the soul to elevate itself to God; rather, they cut the wings of the soul and sink it into material and earthly aspirations.


Translated from the Formative Web of Spanish-Speaking Catholics by Jan Paul von Wendt - www.mercaba.org

1 Saint Luke, Chapter 12, Verse 31


 
We must know the love of Christ, which exceeds all knowledge

From the letters of Saint Margaret Maria Alacoque, virgin and Doctor of the Church

I think that our Lords greatest desire to have His Sacred Heart honored with our most special devotion is directed toward renewing the effects of Redemption in our souls.

The Sacred Heart, in effect, is an inextinguishable source, a fount that desires nothing else than it be poured into the hearts of the humble, so that they may be free and well-disposed to spend their own lives in according to His pleasure.

From this Divine Heart flow without ceasing three streams:

the first is Mercy for sinners, over which it pours the spirit of contrition and penitence;

the second is Charity, for the utility of all those beset by any necessity and, principally, for those who aspire to perfection, so that they find the help needed to overcome their difficulties;

from the third stream emanate love and light for his now perfected friends, those who the Lords Sacred Heart wants to unite them with Himself so as to communicate His wisdom and precepts, with the end that they, in turn, each in their own way, be completely dedicated and committed to promoting His glory.

This divine Heart is an abyss of all assets in which the poor need to submerge their indigence; it is an abyss of bliss, in which we must submerge all of our sadness; it is an abyss of humility against our own ineptitude; it is an abyss of mercy for the downtrodden and unfortunate; and it is an abyss of love, in which our own indigence must be submerged.

It is in our own interest, therefore, that we unite to the Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ at the beginning of our conversion, so as to reach the needed availability of our soul, with the goal that we carry our conversion to term.

Do you not gain from prayer?

If so, it will suffice with you offering to God the pleadings that the Savior utter for our sake in the sacramental altar, offering His fervor in reparation for our tepidness; and, when you so disposed to do something, pray like this:

"My God, I do or suffer - such and such - in the Heart of Your Son and according to His Holy designs, and I offer them in reparation for all the bad or imperfect there is in my own works."

Do so, likewise, in all the circumstances in life. And every time that something horrible, afflictive, injurious happens to us, say to ourselves:

"I accept what the Sacred Heart of Jesus sends me so as to unite myself with It."

Above all, conserve your peace of heart, as it is the greatest treasure.

To conserve it, nothing helps as much as to renounce ones own proper will and to put the will of the divine Heart in place or our own, in such a manner that His divine Heart do on behalf do everything that contributes to His glory and us, full of bliss, subject ourselves to Him and we confide in Him completely.


PRAYER
Infuse, Lord, in our hearts the same spirit with which you enriched Saint Margaret Maria Alacoque, so that we come to a profound knowledge of the incomparable mystery of the love of Christ and we attain our own plenitude in accordance to the total plenitude of God. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit and is God, for ever and ever. Amen


Translated from the Spanish Liturgies of the Hours by Jan Paul von Wendt - liturgiasdelashoras.com.ar


 
 
 
 

 
 

Saint Luke, the Evangelist by Fra Filippo Lippi; c. 1454; Duomo, Prato, Italy; www.wga.hu

 
 

O God, who heals the infirmities of your people, and who called Saint Luke, the beloved doctor, to become one of your evangelists! Grant us that in the healthy doctrine of Your Word transmitted by him, our souls may find the efficacious medicine for all our dolours; through Jesus Christ, Our Lord, Amen


 

O God, who heals the infirmities of your people, and who called Saint Luke, the beloved doctor, to become one of your evangelists! Grant us that in the healthy doctrine of Your Word transmitted by him, our souls may find the efficacious medicine for all our dolours; through Jesus Christ, Our Lord, Amen


 
 
 
 
October 18 - Feast of Saint Luke (+84) - Above all seek the kingdom of God and Its Justice - Homily 62 by Saint Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) - Feast: February 9 (Traditional) / June 27 (New)


 
 

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top
X
OUR FATHER

Our Father, Who Art In Heaven
Hallowed Be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come,
Thy Will be done
On earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread
And forgive us our trespasses
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
Liberate us from all temptation[*]
And deliver us from all evil. Amen



[*] Liberate us is in keeping with the original Latin text.
       God usually does not "lead us" to temptation
       (unless we are tested),
       but gives us the grace to overcome and/or resist it
X
HAIL MARY

Hail Mary, full of grace
The Lord is with thee.
Blessed art though among women,
And blessed is the fruit
Of thy womb, Jesus.
 
Holy Mary, Mary of God
Pray for us sinners
Now, and in the hour
Of our death. Amen


 
X
APOSTLE'S CREED

I believe in God, the Father Almighty Creator of Heaven and earth;
And in Jesus Christ, His Only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the
[work and grace of the] Holy Ghost,[*]
Born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into the Dead.[**]
On the third day, He rose again;
He ascended into Heaven,
And sits at the right hand of God,
the Father Almighty.
From thence he shall come to judge
the living and the dead.
 
I believe in the Holy Ghost,[*]
The Holy Catholic Church,
The communion of saints,
The forgiveness of sins.
The resurrection of the body,
And life everlasting. Amen


[*] Holy Ghost: may be substituted with the current Holy Spirit.
[**] the Dead: "inferi", the underworld or the dead in Latin.
X
GLORIA

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Ghost[*],
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen

[*] Holy Ghost: may be substituted with the current Holy Spirit.
X
DE PROFUNDIS

Out of the depths I have cried to Thee, O Lord:
Lord, hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive
to the voice of my supplication.

If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities:
Lord, who shall abide it.
For with Thee there is merciful forgiveness:
and because of Thy law,
I have waited for Thee, O Lord.

My soul hath waited on His word:
my soul hath hoped in the Lord.
From the morning-watch even until night,
let Israel hope in the Lord.

For with the Lord there is mercy:
and with Him plenteous redemption.
And He shall redeem Israel
from all her iniquities.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Ghost[*],
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen

[*] Holy Ghost: may be substituted with the current Holy Spirit.
X
DE PROFUNDIS

Out of the depths I have cried to Thee, O Lord:
Lord, hear my voice.
Let Thine ears be attentive to the voice
of my supplication.

If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities:
Lord, who shall abide it.
For with Thee there is merciful forgiveness:
and because of Thy law,
I have waited for Thee, O Lord.

My soul hath waited on His word:
my soul hath hoped in the Lord.
From the morning-watch even until night,
let Israel hope in the Lord.

For with the Lord there is mercy:
and with Him plenteous redemption.
And He shall redeem Israel
from all his iniquities.

V. Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord.
R. And let perpetual light shine upon them.
V. From the gate of hell.
R. Deliver their souls, O Lord.
V. May then reset in peace.
R. Amen.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with Thy Spirit.

(50 days indulgence to all who pray the De Profundis with V. and R.
"Requiem aeternam" (Eternal Rest) three times a day.
Pope Leo XIII, February 3, 1888)

Let us pray:
O God, the Creator and Redeemer of all
the faithful, we beseech Thee to grant
to the souls of Thy servants the remission
of their sins, so that by our prayers
they may obtain pardon for which they long.
O Lord, who lives and reigns,
world without end. Amen

May they rest in peace. Amen

CERRAR
SIGUIENTE
PADRE NUESTRO

Padre Nuestro,
que estas en los Cielos
Santificado sea Tu Nombre;
Venga a nosotros tu Reino;
Hgase Tu Voluntad
en la tierra como en el cielo.
Danos hoy nuestro pan de cada da;
Perdona nuestras ofensas,
Como tambin nosotros
perdonamos a los que nos ofenden,
No nos dejes caer en la tentacin,
y lbranos del mal. Amén
 
CERRAR
SIGUIENTE
AVE MARA

Dios te salve, Mara,
llena eres de gracia;
El Seor es Contigo;
Bendita T eres
entre todas las mujeres,
Y bendito es el fruto
De tu vientre, Jess.
 
Santa Mara,
Madre de Dios,
Ruega por nosotros
pecadores,
Ahora y en la hora
De nuestra muerte.
Amn
 
CERRAR
CREDO

Creo en Dios, Padre Todopoderoso,
Creador del cielo y de la tierra.
Creo en Jesucristo,
Su nico Hijo, Nuestro Seor,
Que fue concebido por obra
y gracia del Espritu Santo,
Naci de la Santa Mara Virgen;
Padeci bajo el poder de Poncio Pilato,
Fue crucificado, muerto y sepultado,
Descendi a los infiernos,
Al tercer da resucit de entre los muertos,
Subi a los cielos
Y est sentado a la derecha de Dios,
Padre Todopoderoso.
Desde all ha de venir a juzgar
a los vivos y a los muertos.

Creo en el Espritu Santo,
La Santa Iglesia Catlica,
La comunin de los santos,
El perdn de los pecados,
La resurreccin de la carne
Y la vida eterna. Amn
 
 
CERRAR
DE PROFUNDIS

Desde lo hondo a Ti grito, Seor; Seor,
escucha mi voz;
Estn Tus oidos atentos
a la voz de mi splica.

Si llevas cuenta de los delitos, Seor,
quin podr resistir?
Pero de ti procede el perdn,
y as infundes respeto.
Mi alma espera en el Seor.

Espera en su palabra;
mi alma aguarda al Seor,
ms que el centinela la aurora.
Aguarda Israel al Seor.

Como el centinela la aurora;
porque del Seor viene la misericordia.
la redencin copiosa;
y l redimir a Israel de todos sus delitos.

Gloria al Padre, al Hijo y al
Espritu Santo,
como es desde el principio,
es ahora y ser por los siglos de los siglos.
Amn

X
GLORIA

Gloria al Padre, al Hijo y al
Espritu Santo,
como es desde el principio,
es ahora y ser por los siglos de los siglos.
Amn

CERRAR
DE PROFUNDIS

Desde lo hondo a Ti grito, Seor;
Seor, escucha mi voz;
Estn Tus oidos atentos a
la voz de mi splica.

Si llevas cuenta de los delitos, Seor,
quin podr resistir?

Pero de ti procede el perdn,
y as infundes respeto.
Mi alma espera en el Seor.

Espera en su palabra;
mi alma aguarda al Seor,
ms que el centinela la aurora.
Aguarda Israel al Seor.

Como el centinela la aurora;
porque del Seor viene la misericordia,
la redencin copiosa;
y l redimir a Israel de todos sus delitos.

V. Dadles, Seor, a todas las almas
el descanso eterno.
R. Y haced lucir sobre ellas
vuestra eterna luz.
V. Que en paz descansen.
R. Amn.