Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest
Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest
Reading: Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 144:1b and 2abc, 3-4
Alleluia: Mark 10:45
Gospel: Luke 9:18-22
Saint Vincent de Paul
Saint Vincent de Paul was born in Pouy, France on April 24, 1581, and died on September 27, 1660. He is best known for leading a group of missionaries that came to be called the Congregation of the Mission, or the Vincentians. He would later on establish confraternities at each parish in order to help the poor and sick with both spiritual and physical relief. Saint Louise de Marillac helped create the Daughters of Charity. He was able to persuade the rich women of Paris to collect funds for his missionary projects.
In addition to his charitable works, he also conducted retreats for clergy because he saw that there was ignorance, abuse, and laziness among them.
Pope Leo XIII set him as patron overall charitable societies in 1884. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul was founded in 1833 by one of his admirers, Blessed Frédéric Ozanam.1
No One Can Determine the Right Time to Act
Depending on how old you are, you may recognize the verses of today’s first reading from Turn! Turn! written by Pete Seeger in 1959 and sung by the Byrds. For those who might not be as old as I am, let’s dive in.
The underlying theme in today’s first reading is that God has a time and place for everything here in the land of the living. For each verse there is a point and a counter point.
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.
Ecclesiastes 3:2
But there are lessons here to learn and those lessons ultimately are that there is a right time for everything and that sometimes we have to wait for that time. Other times, that time may come unexpectedly and be simply on God’s time. My grandmother lived to be 102 years old when she died last year. On the other hand, one of my half-sisters only lived about a month, always in the hospital. During the four years that I volunteered at a hospital, I was present for many miscarriages as well as the deaths of many patients. The youngest one being a girl of only 28 days old to people in their late 90’s. In the case of the younger ones, there was often a question of “Why”? During height of COVID, I was on-call from Thursday evening through Monday morning every week. I was present for over 80 patient deaths that year. And still, the question of “Why?”
I am not a theologian, but all I can simply say is that God calls his children home at His appointed hour and not ours. When a young, single mother was holder her infant that had only made it to into the 2nd trimester, all I could do is pray with her, hold her and try to comfort her. Those nights, all I could do afterwards is go to the chapel and pray and drive home and try to get some rest.
And that is all we can do. All we can do is try to live our lives as God is leading us. To accept the gifts that he gives to us and accept that sometimes, we have to give those gifts back to Him.
Peter’s Confession About Jesus
The reading today is very similar to what we had this past Sunday in Mark 9:30-37. Therefore, I will send you over to what I wrote there if you have not had a chance to read it.
I encourage you, that if you have experienced the tragedy of experiencing a miscarriage, stillbirth, or death of a child, and you haven’t had a chance to heal, please make an appointment with your pastor. There are resources that are available to assist you, whether it happened recently or many years in the past.
Click this link for more information: Redbird Ministries
Blessing of Parents after a Miscarriage or Stillbirth
from the USCCB
https://www.usccb.org/prayers/blessing-parents-after-miscarriage-or-stillbirth
Introductory Rites
All make the Sign of the Cross. The leader begins:
Let us praise the Father of mercies,
the God of all consolation.
Blessed be God for ever.
R/. Blessed be God for ever.
In the following or similar words, the leader prepares those present for the blessing.
For those who trust in God,
in the pain of sorrow there is consolation,
in the face of despair there is hope,
in the midst of death there is life.
N. and N., as we mourn the death of your child,
we place ourselves in the hands of God
and ask for strength, for healing, and for love.
Reading of the Word of God
One of those present or the leader reads a text of Sacred Scripture (Lam 3:17-18, 21-24).
Listen to the words of the Book of Lamentations:
My soul is deprived of peace,
I have forgotten what happiness is;
I tell myself my future is lost,
all that I hope for from the LORD.
But I will call this to mind,
as my reason to have hope:
The favors of the LORD are not exhausted,
his mercies are not spent;
They are renewed each morning,
so great is his faithfulness.
My portion is the LORD, says my soul;
therefore I will hope in him.
The word of the Lord.
R/. Thanks be to God.
Intercessions
The intercessions are then said.
Let us pray to God, who throughout the ages
has heard the cries of parents.
R/. Lord, hear our prayer.
For N. and N., who know the pain of grief, that they may be comforted,
we pray to the Lord. R/.
For this family, that it may find new hope in the midst of suffering,
we pray to the Lord. R/.
For all who have suffered the loss of a child, that Christ may be their support,
we pray to the Lord. R/.
After the intercessions, the leader invites all present to say the Lord's Prayer.
Prayer of Blessing
The leader says the prayer of blessing with hands joined.
Compassionate God,
soothe the hearts of N. and N.,
and grant that through the prayers of Mary,
who grieved by the Cross of her Son,
you may enlighten their faith,
give hope to their hearts,
and peace to their lives.
Lord, grant mercy to all the members of this family
and comfort them with the hope
that one day we will all live with you,
with your Son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit,
forever and ever.
R/. Amen.
Or:
Lord, God of all creation,
we bless and thank you for your tender care.
Receive this life you created in love
and comfort your faithful people in their time of loss
with the assurance of your unfailing mercy.
Through Christ our Lord.
R/. Amen.
Concluding Rite
The leader concludes the rite by signing himself or herself with the Sign of the Cross and saying:
May God give us peace in our sorrow,
consolation in our grief,
and strength to accept his will in all things
R/. Amen.
Today’s music:
Franciscan Media, Saint Vincent de Paul, https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-vincent-de-paul/