Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi
The Lord and Job Meet
Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi
Job 38:1, 12-21; 40:3-5
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 139:1-3, 7-8, 9-10, 13-14ab
Alleluia: Psalm 95:8
Gospel: Luke 10:13-16
Saint Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi was born in 1181 in Assisi, Italy to a wealthy merchant. He was in the military and was content with that life until he started having visions that would lead him to being a monk. He was praying in front of the crucifix at the Church of St. Damian when Jesus told him to “go and rebuild my Church.” And St. Francis not only built up the physical church, but also the church community in which he lived. He was known for his love of nature and caring for the poor. On September 14, 1224, he received the stigmata on his hands, feet, and side.
A popular devotion for today is to have one’s pets blessed by a priest.
He was canonized by Pope Gregory IX in 1228, and he is the patron saint of Italy.
My godfather is a Third Order Franciscan and the first ever crucifix that I ever owned came from him. It is pictured below and hangs above the door to my bedroom.
https://divineoffice.org/about-1004-assisi/?date=20241004
The Lord and Job Meet
Our reading from Job today advances our story several chapters and it is no longer Job and his three friends dialoguing back and forth but now God himself answers Job. The reading shows the sheer awesomeness of God and the limitations of mankind. Job’s response shows the humility and meekness of man in comparison.
3 Then Job answered the LORD and said:
4 Look, I am of little account; what can I answer you?
I put my hand over my mouth.
5 I have spoken once, I will not reply;
twice, but I will do so no more.
When see God’s chastisement of Job within the limitations of our fallen human nature, we can say “Wow, that was harsh and Job didn’t deserve that.” But we need to look at it more from the perspective of Job and in the meekness of his response.
When we are going through trials God may not talk to us directly, like he did with Job. He may use others to deliver his message, whether it be a priest, family or friends. We need to be humble enough to listen to them.
Reproaches to Unrepentant Towns
In yesterday’s gospel reading, Jesus sends out the seventy-two disciples to preach that the kingdom of God is at hand. In today’s gospel reading, while they are gone, Jesus talks about the places that he has been already, Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum and compares them to Tyre and Sidon. The first three places are in Israel and have been witnesses to the Jesus’ miracles and his preaching, but they rejected him. Tyre and Sidon were on the Phoenician coast and never were exposed to Jesus’ teaching until after his death and resurrection.
At the end of the reading, Jesus say:
“Whoever listens to you listens to me. Whoever rejects you rejects me. And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”
Luke 10:16
This still holds true today. Through apostolic succession Jesus passed down the teaching authority of the Church through his apostles. The Pope, in communion with the bishops, composes the Magisterium. If we reject our priests and bishops then we are rejecting Jesus and by rejecting Jesus, we reject God.
I. Moral Life and the Magisterium of the Church
2032 The Church, the "pillar and bulwark of the truth," "has received this solemn command of Christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth." "To the Church belongs the right always and everywhere to announce moral principles, including those pertaining to the social order, and to make judgments on any human affairs to the extent that they are required by the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls."
2033 The Magisterium of the Pastors of the Church in moral matters is ordinarily exercised in catechesis and preaching, with the help of the works of theologians and spiritual authors. Thus from generation to generation, under the aegis and vigilance of the pastors, the "deposit" of Christian moral teaching has been handed on, a deposit composed of a characteristic body of rules, commandments, and virtues proceeding from faith in Christ and animated by charity. Alongside the Creed and the Our Father, the basis for this catechesis has traditionally been the Decalogue which sets out the principles of moral life valid for all men.
2034 The Roman Pontiff and the bishops are "authentic teachers, that is, teachers endowed with the authority of Christ, who preach the faith to the people entrusted to them, the faith to be believed and put into practice." The ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him teach the faithful the truth to believe, the charity to practice, the beatitude to hope for.
2035 The supreme degree of participation in the authority of Christ is ensured by the charism of infallibility. This infallibility extends as far as does the deposit of divine Revelation; it also extends to all those elements of doctrine, including morals, without which the saving truths of the faith cannot be preserved, explained, or observed.
2036 The authority of the Magisterium extends also to the specific precepts of the natural law, because their observance, demanded by the Creator, is necessary for salvation. In recalling the prescriptions of the natural law, the Magisterium of the Church exercises an essential part of its prophetic office of proclaiming to men what they truly are and reminding them of what they should be before God
https://www.vatican.va/content/catechism/en/part_three/section_one/chapter_three/article_3/i_moral_life_and_the_magisterium_of_the_church.html
We need to listen and respect those in church authority. It does not mean that we need to blindly accept things that are said when in a personal capacity and when something is said outside of the Magisterial authority. We do have the right and duty to question these things, especially when church teaching tells us otherwise. However, we need to default expecting the best outcome, otherwise we will become continually jaded and bitter.
Prayer for a Holy Church and Priests
O my Jesus,
I beg You on behalf of the whole Church:
Grant it love and the light of Your Spirit
and give power to the words of priests
so that hardened hearts might be brought to repentance
and return to You, O Lord.
Lord, give us holy priests;
You Yourself maintain them in holiness.
O Divine and Great High Priest,
may the power of Your mercy accompany them everywhere
and protect them from the devil's traps and snares
which are continually being set for the souls of priests.
May the power of Your mercy, O Lord,
shatter and bring to naught
all that might tarnish the sanctity of priests,
for You can do all things.
I ask You, Jesus,
for a special blessing
and for light for the priests
before whom I will make my confessions throughout my lifetime.
Amen.
https://www.catholic.org/prayers/prayer.php?p=3239
Today’s Music: