Reflections on the Daily Readings 19h June 2023
Monday 19th June
Take your place in paradise
A thousand years ago, Italian monk Saint Romuald founded a religious order, the Camaldolese, that blended the Christian hermit tradition into monastic life. His monks lived in individual cells but participated in some communal activities. Romuald’s rule of life put solitude and contemplation and meditation on the Psalms at the center of his order’s spirituality. He wrote, “Sit in your cell as in paradise. Put the whole world behind you and forget it. Watch your thoughts like a good fisherman watching for fish. The path you must follow is in the Psalms— never leave it.” Tap into this tradition and try finding a place of solitude and, with the Psalms handy, carve out some quiet time for contemplation in your busy day.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 6:1-10; Matthew 5:38-42
Tuesday 20th June
We are one vast body in this one vast Lord
On this day in 1926, the 28th International Eucharistic Congress opened in Chicago, the first one held in the United States. Mass at Soldier Field attracted an estimated 400,000 people gathered in and around the stadium and featured a “Nuns and Women’s Choir of 10,000 Voices.” At its conclusion, 750,000 pilgrims joined a 40-mile eucharistic procession—on foot or by car, bus, and rail—to St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. A logistical marvel of mass transit, this gathering was as important for Chicago as it was for the U.S. church. Let these words, from 2021’s international congress, be your meditation today: “He is our Lord and our Master, our friend and our food, our healer and our peace.”
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 8:1-9; Matthew 5:43-48
Wednesday 21st June
Your mission
The brief life of Saint Aloysius Gonzaga (he died at 23) is instructive for all who hope to raise or nurture young faith. Though he was raised in royal privilege, a book about the experiences of Jesuit missionaries in India inspired Aloysius to leave his comfortable world behind and dedicate his life to God. As it turned out, his mission field would be closer to home, as he gave his life serving the sick during a terrible plague in Rome in 1591. Young people are inspired by heroic examples of service. Be that inspiration.
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 9:6-11; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18
Thursday 22nd June
Discipleship still can be costly
Sir (and Saint) Thomas More, the British humanist and statesman, stared down King Henry VIII and paid the price. He was beheaded in 1535 for refusing to support the king’s desire to control the Catholic Church. The 1960 play (and later film) A Man for All Seasons kept alive More’s considerable reputation as martyr and man of letters. More’s final words affirmed that he was the “king’s good servant and God’s first.” Most of us won’t have to die for our faith, but many will pay a price for doing the right and faithful thing in a difficult situation. What has your faith cost you?
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 11:1-11; Matthew 6:7-15
Friday 23rd June
’Tis a gift
The classic rock song “Simple Man” was written by two musicians who had recently lost loved ones: a grandmother and a mother. As the two were sharing stories and advice from these women, the verses of a song began to emerge. The women’s advice was simple: Remember God, slow down in life, follow your heart, and find everything you need in your soul. Living simply was key for these women, and it is key for our life as Christians. As you encounter the gospels in your prayer and during Mass, what values of simple living do you hear woven into its verses?
Today's readings: 2 Corinthians 11:18, 21-30; Matthew 6:19-23
Saturday 24th June
Find your voice
Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, stands in for all of us who fall silent when our doubt overcomes our faith. Along the path of life where we sometimes lose our way, it’s difficult to trust that God is with us always. When Zechariah comes to his senses and realizes God is indeed active in his life through the wondrous birth of John, he is able to speak again. So it is with us. We find our authentic voice when we trust in God.
SOLEMNITY OF THE NATIVITY OF SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST
Today's readings: Isaiah 49:1-6; Acts 13:22-26; Luke 1:57-66, 80
