Thursday of the First Week of Advent - St. Benedict

-
Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them
will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
- Matthew 7:24

In a sermon on the text of today’s Gospel, the great Syrian bishop Philoxenus of Mabbug reflects, “This saying of our Master obliges us to be diligent in hearing God’s word, but also in doing it… God’s disciples need to have firmly anchored in their souls the remembrance of their Master, Jesus Christ, and to think of him day and night” (from Homily I: SC 44, 27-31).[1]


The “Patriarch of Western Monks,” Saint Benedict of Nursia, understood that the Christian life begins with a willingness to listen—this is so important to Benedict’s view of the spiritual life, that it is the first word of his Rule, a document that has guided the lives of Benedictine monks, nuns, and sisters for 1500 years. Saint Benedict says, “Let us arise, then, at last, for the Scripture stirs us up, saying, ‘Now is the hour for us to rise from sleep’ (Rom. 13:11). Let us open our eyes to the deifying light, let us hear with attentive ears the warning which the divine voice cries daily to us, ‘Today if you hear His voice, harden not your hearts’ (Ps. 94[95]:8).”[2]

Because Advent is a time of promise, a listening spirit is essential for living the mystery of Advent. The challenge of this season, however, is to discern the call of the Lord’s herald who proclaims a message of hope: “Trust in the Lord forever! For the Lord is an eternal Rock” (Isaiah 26:4).
 
 
Prayer for Thursday of the First Week of Advent +
Stir up your power, O Lord,
and come to our help with mighty strength,
that what our sins impede
the grace of your mercy may hasten.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
(from The Roman Missal)
 
 



[1] Taken from The Fathers on the Sunday Gospels, ed. Stephen Mark Holmes (Collegeville, MN, The Liturgical Press, 2012). 80-81.


[2] Rule of Saint Benedict: The Prologue. Selections above from Saint Benedict's Rule for Monasteries, translated from the Latin by Leonard J. Doyle OblSB, of Saint John's Abbey, (© Copyright 1948, 2001, by the Order of Saint Benedict, Collegeville, MN 56321).

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Saint Lucina of the Catacombs of Callistus: Reflecting the Savior’s Kindness and Love

-
Image
Lucina (or Lucy) was a wealthy Roman woman who, according to ancient legends, was converted to the Christian Faith by Saint Peter. When the persecution of the Emperor Nero began (in the year 64), Lucina showed kindness to the imprisoned Christians, including Saints Martinian and Processus , who had served as Saint Peter’s guards while he was in prison awaiting execution. These two men were converted to the Faith by Peter and were executed a few days after the Apostle. Saint Lucina is remembered for courageously giving proper burial to the martyrs. She is believed to have suffered martyrdom herself and has been honored as a martyr since the fourth century.   She is buried in the Catacomb of Saint Callistus in Rome. Today, the relics of Saints Martinian and Processes are enshrined in Saint Peter’s Basilica . Detail of the Catacomb of Callistus In today’s Gospel (Thursday of the Thirteenth Week of Ordinary Time) we hear how Jesus restored a paralyzed man to health. But t
Read more

For Christmas 2020

-
Image
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…  And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us,  and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.  —Luke 1:1-2, 14 The Gospel of the Christmas Mass “During the Day” Every Christmas we celebrate the truth that God became a human being. This belief is so essential that to deny it or to try to explain it away is to give up the foundational belief of Christians. The Solemnity of Christmas invites us to pause and reflect on what these words really mean.  It is one thing to simply repeat the words of the Nicene Creed: “and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary and became man.” It is quite another to allow these words to effect a change in our lives. As Cardinal Basil Hume observed, “The words are simple and direct, but their meaning is far beyond our power to comprehend… But it is not flesh and blood that leads us to t
Read more

For the Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time (Cycle B, 2021)

-
Image
All were amazed and asked one another, “What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” His fame spread everywhere throughout the whole region of Galilee. —Mark 1:27-28 When many people hear the word “prophet,” they imagine someone who is essentially a divinely sanctioned fortune-teller. But, if we look at the full story of salvation as it is presented in the Bible, we recognize that prophets were just as concerned with the here and now as they were with the world to come. In fact, it was the prophets’ special mission to help the people recognize the truth about themselves and the world around them, especially calling them to the see how their words and actions impacted their relationships with God and others what the consequences of those words and actions might be. Prophets told the truth. Because of this, prophets were often hated, especially by people in power.   "Moses" by Michelangelo Buanarroti in the Church of San
Read more