St. Maroun's Cathedral Parish | Education

St. Maroun's Cathedral Parish

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24.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint Gertrude of Helfta (1256-1301) - Benedictine nun. "In him we will make our dwelling." (Jn 14:23) Saint Bernard has written in his sermons, saying: "I think that the soul in a state of grace is not only heavenly on account of its origin, it is even not unworthy itself to be called heaven on account of its imitation of heaven: it is heaven in its manner of life. It is of souls like these that it is written in the Book of Wisdom: "The soul of the ju...st is the throne of wisdom" (Prv 12:23 [LXX]). And again: "Heaven is my throne" (Is 66:1). As that soul knows that God is a spirit, therefore he has no hesitation in ascribing to it a spiritual throne. I am confirmed in this belief by the promise of He who is Truth: "My Father and I will come to him (that is, the just man) and make our dwelling within him" (Jn 14:23). The prophet was making the same point when he said: "But thou dwellest in the holy place, the praise of Israel" (Ps 21:4 LXX). And the Apostle declares that Christ "dwells by faith in our hearts" (Eph 3:17). But I aspire from afar to the state of those truly blessed ones of whom it is said: I will dwell in them and walk among them" (2 Cor 6:16). Oh! how great is the breadth of that soul and how glorious are the merits of her who has within her the power of divinity, and who is found worthy of receiving him and able to contain him, in whom there is room enough for the fulfilment of the work of his Majesty! She grew into the holy temple of the Lord (Eph 2:21); she grew, I say, in the measure of charity, which is the dimension of the soul. Therefore, in the heaven of this holy soul she has her intellect as a sun, faith as a moon, and virtues as stars. Certainly the sun of this soul is the sun of justice or the fervor of burning charity, and the moon is continence. Nor is it surprising that the Lord Jesus willingly dwells in this heaven. This soul was not like others; he did not merely speak in order to create it (cf. Ps 148:5), but he fought to win it, and he laid down his life to redeem it. After his labors, as he saw his desire fulfilled, he said: "This is my resting place for ever and ever: here will I dwell, for I have chosen it" (Ps 131:14). See more

20.01.2022 3 April 2020 Friday evening homily by Deacon Ron.

15.01.2022 Resurrection Homily continued by Deacon Ron.

13.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint Thomas More (1478 - 1535) - English Statesman, Martyr. "Christ, God and man." Perhaps someone may wonder how it could be that our Savior Christ could feel sadness, sorrow, and grief, since he was truly God, equal to his all-powerful Father. Certainly he could not have felt them if he had not been God in such a way as not to be man also. ... But as a matter of fact, since he was no less really a man than he was really God, I see no reason for us to be surprised that, insofar as he was man, he had the ordinary feelings of mankind (though certainly no blameworthy ones) - no more than we would be surprised that insofar as he was God, he performed stupendous miracles. For if we are surprised that Christ felt fear, weariness and grief, simply on the grounds that he was God, why should we not also be surprised that he experienced hunger, thirst and sleep, seeing that he was none the less divine for doing these things? For the time being, however, he had more than one reason why he should choose to suffer fear, sadness, weariness and grief "choose", I say, not "be forced", for who could have forced God? But as I was saying, Christ, in his wonderful generosity, chose to do this for a number of reasons. First of all, in order to do that for which he came into the world that is, to bear witness to the truth. For there have been some who went so far wrong as to deny altogether that he was truly a man. And so, to cure this very deadly disease, the best and kindest of physicians chose to show that he really was a man. See more

13.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint John-Paul II (Pope from 1978 to 2005). "Jesus is burning with the desire to be loved." Jesus entrusted to the fearful, astounded disciples, the gift of "forgiving sins", a gift that flows from the wounds in his hands, his feet, and especially from his pierced side. From there a wave of mercy is poured out over all humanity.... Let us relive this moment with great spiritual intensity. Today the Lord also shows us his glorious wounds and his heart, an inexhaustible source of light and truth, of love and forgiveness. The Heart of Christ! His "Sacred Heart" has given men everything: redemption, salvation, sanctification. Through the mystery of this wounded heart, the restorative tide of God's merciful love continues to spread over the men and women of our time. Here alone can those who long for true and lasting happiness find its secret. "Jesus, I trust in you"... this prayer, dear to so many of the faithful, clearly expresses the attitude with which we too would like to abandon ourselves trustfully into your hands, O Lord, our only Savior. You are burning with the desire to be loved, O Jesus, and those in tune with the sentiments of your heart learn how to build the new civilization of love. A simple act of abandonment is enough to overcome the barriers of darkness and sorrow, of doubt and desperation. The rays of your divine mercy restore hope, in a special way, to those who feel overwhelmed by the burden of sin. (Homily for Divine Mercy Sunday, 22 April 2001, 4-6) See more

09.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint Augustine (354-430) - Bishop of Hippo (North Africa) and Doctor of the Church. "You are witnesses of these things" (Sermon 116; PL 38, 657). After his resurrection, the Lord appeared to his disciples and greeted them, saying: Peace be with you! Peace is what this saving salutation truly is since the word salutation derives from the word for salvation. What more could one hope for? Man receives greetings of salvation in person, for our salv...ation is Christ. Yes, he is our salvation, he who was wounded for our sake and nailed to the tree then descended from the tree and placed in a tomb. But he is risen from the tomb and his wounds are healed although still keeping their scars. That his scars remain is a help to his disciples so that the wounds in their hearts might be healed. What wounds are these? The wounds of their unbelief. He appeared before their eyes in a genuine bodily form and they thought they were seeing a ghost. This is no light wound to their heart. But what does the Lord Jesus say? Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? It is good for man, not that thoughts should arise in his heart but that his heart should arise arise, that is to say, to where the apostle Paul wanted to set the hearts of the faithful when he said to them: If you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory (Col 3:1-4). What glory is this? The glory of the resurrection. As for us, we believe in the word of these disciples without their having shown us the Savior's risen body. But at that time such an event seemed unbelievable. And so our Savior led them to believe, not by sight alone but by touch, so that by means of the senses faith might enter their hearts and be preached throughout the world to those who had neither seen nor touched but who, nevertheless, would believe unhesitatingly (cf.Jn 20:29). See more

06.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint Gertrude of Helfta (1256-1301) - Benedictine nun. "Let us offer the Lord our testimonies of love." When the gospel was read: "You have a devil" (Jn 8:52), Gertrude, wounded to the core by the injustice done to her Lord and unable to bear it that the beloved of her soul should hear such undeserved insults, said these tender words to him in compensation from the deepest feeling of her heart: "O beloved Jesus! O my one and only salvation!"... And her lover, wanting to repay her superabundantly in his goodness, as he usually did, taking her by the chin in his blessed hand, tenderly inclined towards her and dropped these words into the ear of her soul with the sweetest of murmurs: "I, your Creator, your Redeemer and your lover, I have sought you at the cost of all my blessedness through the anguish of death." With all the ardor of our heart and soul, then, let us strive to offer our testimonies of love to the Lord every time we hear someone addressing an injury towards him. And if we are unable to do so with the same fervor, let us at least show him the will and desire for this fervor, the desire and love of every creature for God, and let us trust in his generous goodness: he will not despise the modest offering of his poor ones, but rather, according to the riches of his mercy and sweetness, will accept it while recompensing them far beyond our merits. See more

04.01.2022 Spiritual talk by Deacon Ron. Wishing you all a blessed Holy weekend!

02.01.2022 Reading of the day from Saint Clement of Alexandria (c.150-215) - Theologian "Light came into the world." The commandment of the Lord shines clearly, enlightening the eyes (Ps 18 [19]:9). Receive O Christ, receive power to see, receive your light, that you may plainly recognize both God and man. Let us open ourselves to the light and so to God. Let us open ourselves to the light and become disciples of the Lord. Let us shake off forgetfulness of truth, shake off the mist of... ignorance and darkness that dims our eyes, and contemplate the true God. For upon us who are buried in darkness, imprisoned in the shadow of death, a heavenly light has shone, a light of a clarity surpassing the sun's, and of a sweetness exceeding any this earthly life can offer. That light is eternal life, and those who receive it live. Night, on the other hand, is afraid of the light, and melting away in terror gives place to the day of the Lord. Unfailing light has penetrated everywhere, and sunset has turned into dawn. This is the meaning of the new creation (Gal 6:15; Rv 21:1) for the Sun of Righteousness (Mal 3:20), pursuing his course through the universe, visits all alike, in imitation of his Father, who makes his sun rise upon all (Mt 5:45) and bedews everyone with his truth. He it is who has changed sunset into dawn and death into life by his crucifixion; He it is who has snatched the human race from perdition and exalted it to the skies. Transplanting what was corruptible to make it incorruptible he has transformed earth into heaven. He deifies us by his heavenly teaching, by instilling his laws into our minds, and writing them on our hearts. That all, be they of high estate or low, shall know that I am God. And I will be merciful to them," God says, "and I will remember their sin no more (Jr 31:33f.). Let us accept the laws of life, then; let us obey God's promptings; let us learn to know him. See more