Category Archives: Critical Mass

O Sapientia!

December 17, 2013Advent, Critical MassJesse TreeCadyLy

Today begins the O Antiphons! It’s when the prayers of the Church change to more intently prepare for the celebration of the birth of Christ. O Sapientia is the antiphon for today and it celebrates Jesus as Wisdom: Sirach (or Ecclesiasticus in old Bibles) 24:2; Wisdom 8:1

In the assembly of the Most High she opens her mouth, in the presence of his host she tells of her glory

Indeed, she spans the world from end to end mightily and governs all things well.

Teach me Your ways, O Lord, that I might grow in wisdom.

Bible Study – Session 15, Adventures in Matthew

January 11, 2009Bible Study, Critical Mass, Jennspeak, Neat Things I Didn't Author, Prayer/Prayer RequestsCadyLy

This was a really productive Bible study for me this evening. I really enjoyed answering my questions and reflecting upon the Word of God. Here are three things which I came across this evening that were of particular significance to me:

1. “To deny oneself is to disown oneself as the center on one’s existence.” — The Catholic Study Bible (Pg. 1283; MT 16:24)

2. Sin thwarts us in our vocation as God’s children. Pp. 549, Catechism of the Catholic Church

3. Regarding the Transfiguration: “Peter did not yet understand this when he wanted to remain with Christ on the mountain. It has been reserved for you, Peter, but for after death. For now, Jesus says: ‘Go down to toil on earth, to serve on earth, to be scorned and crucified on earth. Life goes down to be killed; Bread goes down to suffer hunger; the Way goes down to be exhausted on his journey; the Spring goes down to suffer thirst; and you refuse to suffer?'” — St. Augustine, Sermo 78, 6: PL 38, 492-493, cf. Lk 9:33

Sin is, to me, a fixation on self. A feeding of that which is of the earth and of ourselves. A selfishness of mind, body and spirit. A turning from His will, in the preference of our own. By pleading with God to remove all suffering from our life, we are asking not to be a part of Christ’s redemptive suffering on the cross. And to choose not to take up our cross and suffer alongside Him, we are choosing also not to share in his Resurrection and kingdom. Instead, we should choose to take up our cross, and suffer alongside our Lord — but not blindly. We should always unite our suffering to his for a purpose. Somehow, God will make our suffering efficacious for those purposes. We should not waste our suffering, but have it be used as redemption for others. Enter fully into the body of Christ and give fully of ourselves — not only the good parts and the surplus of ourselves and our possessions, but of our suffering, pain and need. When we have given of ourselves until we are empty and wrung out, will we truly know what it means to submit completely and receive back all the grace of our Lord. The more we empty of ourselves, the more we have room for Him.

Lord, in the words of John the Baptist on this day of the Baptism of our Lord, help me to decrease in myself, so that He who dwells within me can increase.
Amen.

Also, at the beginning of Vocation Week, let us remember the words of Fr. Mark’s homily today (he quoting someone else, I just forget who): “There is no VAcation from your VOcation.” How true. May we always live according to God’s plan for our life. Please join me in praying for people’s discernment of the vocation God has in mind for them, and the acceptance of this calling, whether to the priesthood, diaconate, religious life, married life or single life; may all of God’s people live for the glory of Him according to their state of life.

Questions – Maccabean Revolt

January 16, 2008Bible Study, Critical Mass, Question of the DayCadyLy

A couple of questions arose in Bible study which were unable to be adequately answered in discussion:

1. Regarding 2 Mc 7, the 7 brothers and their mom had unwavering faith in God and were able to withstand their tormentors due to their hope (as in certainty in the goodness and fidelity of God, as opposed to wishful thinking) in the Lord. They knew that God would raise them, and had complete faith in this, and were so able to look beyond the horrible things which were done to them. Where did they get this faith in the resurrection? Paragraph 992 of the Catechism states that, “God revealed the resurrection of the dead to his people progressively.” Okay, how was this progressively revealed to the people such that by the time of this event, the woman and her sons would have such great faith? The reference in the Catechism begins with this text in Maccabees, and continues to talk of Jesus’s ministry. So, how was this shown prior to Maccabees? The only thing that I could think of, and I admit that it’s not a stunning argument, is when Elijah was taken up in the fiery chariot. But this would only seem to point to a reality outside of that which we concretely know now here on Earth, not necessarily on the resurrection of the dead (since he didn’t “die”). And, we haven’t gotten to the New Testament quite yet, but isn’t there a part where Jesus goes up to the mountain and sees Elijah and Moses? *That* would point to a resurrection of the dead, since, I believe, Moses died. However, if I’m remembering correctly about that story (and it is in the NT and not the OT), it still doesn’t explain the faith of this family during the time of the Maccabean Revolt. Any ideas?

2. On a tangent to our discussion (since we were reading one of the deuterocanon books, the conversation drifted to the canon of Scripture), we were noting that the Protestants and the Hebrews use a shorter canon that does not include 7 books of the Old Testament which were in the Greek Septuagint that the Catholic Church has used to define their canon. Alright, I don’t (at the moment) have a question about the canon; however, if the Hebrew canon doesn’t have Maccabees, how do they preserve the tradition of Hanukkah, seeing as that story is told in Maccabees? Or is it found elsewhere in Hebrew-accepted Scripture?