Memorial of Saint John Vianney, priest
Do not deal unfairly, then; but stand in fear of your God.
His disciples came and took away the corpse and buried him; and they went and told Jesus. Matthew 14:12
Piety
(From a Cathecism on Prayer by St. John Mary Vianney)
A Christian’s treasure is not on earth but in heaven. Our thoughts, then, ought to turn to where our treasure is. And our duty, consequently, is the splendid one of praying and loving. If you pray and love, you will have blessedness on earth.
What is prayer? Nothing else than union with God. When a person’s heart is pure and united with God, one experiences an intoxicating sweetness and is filled with light. In this intimate union, God and the soul are like two candles that have melted together and can no longer be separated. This union of God with his lowly creature is a marvelous thing and a happiness which can not be fully comprehended.
Study
http://www.usccb.org/nab/080407.shtml
Today we meet Jesus as we go with the disciples to give him the news about John. Jesus is at one of the lowest points in his public ministry and earthly life right now. He has just left his home town where he was rejected by people who knew his family while he was growing up the carpenter’s son. Now, he learns the bad news about his cousin, John the Baptist whose unjust death by execution (state-sponsored terror?) prefigures Jesus’ own demise at the order of the political leaders of from the same family.
In response, Jesus retires to a deserted place to contemplate the fate of his beloved cousin, the cousin who leapt in the womb when a the Virgin with child visited. In that place, perhaps he also contemplated his own fate, as he would when we see him alone again in the garden on Holy Thursday night.
In the coming days, we will read about Jesus returning to performing miracles but for now, he has to cope with the weight of rejection and loss – sharing in the toughest part of our union -- our common humanity.
When have you felt at your lowliest? Depressed? Upset? Sad? Angry?
How do we rise above such feelings and emotions? Madison Avenue may encourage you to go shopping and turn to the cult of affluence.
What does Jesus do? He retires by himself where he can be alone with himself and his father so he can be re-energized for the challenges that are to come. Seek what is from above.
Action
Check in with yourself emotionally today? How are you feeling? How are the people around you? Perhaps you may want to check your relative stress levels against this web tool. http://stress-management.net/stress-test.htm
No matter what your level of stress, spend some time alone with God. Seek that union with God that
Do not stay by yourself. After a little while to pray in union with God, rejoin a group of people in community where you also can get their support.
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