13 Nov
Tue
32nd Week in Ordinary Time
Wis. 2:23-3:9
Ps. 34:1-2, 16-18
Lk. 17:7-10
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The passage today from the Book of Wisdom is very frequently used at Masses of Christian Burial. Its purpose then is to give consolation and hope to the bereaved by recalling our faith that death is not the end but the beginning of life with God. Our hope is full of immortality.

All of us have lost loved ones in death, and this passage is a consolation for us at this moment. But today let us try to hear this passage, not as applying to those who have already died, but to us who still must face our own death some day in the future. Death is certain, but the time, place and circumstances of our own death are unknown to us. We cannot be sure how we will approach the moment of our death since it is a unique experience, still in the future for us. No one is allowed the ability to die more than once. If we could die more than once, we would be able to correct any mistakes, but such is not the case. Death is a once in a lifetime event.

The present is the time to prepare for death. This day is an occasion for us to renew our faith that God's love for us is so great that death is not an utter destruction. Death is awesome, even fearful, especially for those who has no faith in the Lord. But through faith which begets the hope of immortality, we should approach our own death with complete trust in the goodness of God.



Lord, embrace me in Your love. I want to abide with You forever.

DAILY OFFERING
Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day; my thoughts, words, joys and sufferings. Grant that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service to You and to others. I also pray that all those preparing for marriage discover in Sacrament the source of Christ's grace for living a fithful and fruitful love. Amen.

PRAYING WITH THE CHURCH
INTENTION
That holy and exemplary men and women may be our companions in proclaiming boldly the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Elaboration

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P R A Y I N G    W I T H    T H E    C H U R C H    

INTENTION : That holy and exemplary men and women may be our companions in proclaiming boldly the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.

"They began to proclaim the word of God boldly" (Acts 4:31). The word "boldly" can also be translated as "audaciously" or with "forthrightness" in announcing the Christian message. The ideal agents of evangelisation should be "holy and exemplary persons". Though God could have spread His Kingdom without human collaboration, He has always sought human partners, who as suitable and free instruments, work for the salvation of humankind.

The laity can evangelise chiefly through prayer, the testimony of life and the establishment of a temporal order inspired by the Gospel. Though preaching the Gospel is the competence and principal duty of those who have been ordained, lay people, who have the necessary theological training, can preach.

Vatican II stresses the need for priests to be holy preachers. God ordinarily prefers to show his wonders through those men who are more submissive to the impulse and guidance of the Holy Spirit. Because of their intimate union with Christ and their holiness of life, they are able to say with St Paul: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (Gal. 2:20). Let us therefore pray that all those who devote themselves directly to evangelisation may live a holy life that emphasises the credibility of the Christian message.




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