Churches of the Day

All the Saints of Ireland
Let us not lose sight of Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection.

Saints of the Day; Nov 6; ; All the Saints of Ireland
C/f A short review of today’s saints can be found below today’s Readings and Reflection.     

FIRST READING

A reading from the letter to the Hebrews       11:2, 12:1-4, 15, 13:1
Let us not lose sight of Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection.

It was for faith that our ancestors were commended. With so many witnesses in a great cloud on every side of us, we too, then, should throw off everything that hinders us, especially the sin that clings so easily, and keep running steadily in the race we have started.

Let us not lose sight of Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection: for the sake of the joy which was still in the future, he endured the cross, disregarding the shamefulness of it, and from now on has taken his place at the right of God’s throne.
Think of the way he stood such opposition from sinners and then you will not give up for want of courage. In the fight against sin, you have not yet had to keep fighting to the point of death.

Be careful that no one is deprived of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness should begin to grow and make trouble; this can poison a whole community. Continue to love each other like brothers, and remember always to welcome strangers, for by doing this, some people have entertained angels without knowing it.

The Word of the Lord.                 Thanks be to God.


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Alternative FIRST READING 

A reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus     44:1-15
Their name lives on for all generations.

Let us praise illustrious men, our ancestors in their successive generations.
The Lord has created an abundance of glory, and displayed his greatness from earliest times.
Some wielded authority as kings and were renowned for their strength;
others were intelligent advisers and uttered prophetic oracles.
Others directed the people by their advice, by their understanding of the popular mind,
and by the wise words of their teaching; others composed musical melodies, and set down ballads;
others were rich and powerful, living peacefully in their homes.

All these were honoured by their contemporaries, and were the glory of their day.
Some of them left a name behind them, so that their praises are still sung.
While others have left no memory, and disappeared as though they had not existed,
they are now as though they had never been, and so too, their children after them.

Here is a list of generous men whose good works have not been forgotten. In their descendants there remains a rich inheritance born of them. Their descendants stand by the covenants and, thanks to them, so do their children's children.
Their offspring will last for ever, their glory will not fade.
Their bodies have been buried in peace, and their name lives on for all generations.
The peoples will proclaim their wisdom, the assembly will celebrate their praises.

The Word of the Lord.             Thanks be to God.


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Responsorial Psalm           Ps 125: Rv 5
Response                                Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord.

1.Those who put their trust in the Lord are like Mount Sion,
that cannot be shaken, that stands for ever.                           Response

2. Jerusalem! The mountains surround her,
so the Lord surrounds his people both now and for ever.   Response

3. For the sceptre of the wicked shall not rest over the land of the just
for fear that the hands of the just should turn to evil.         Response

4. Do good, Lord, to those who are good, to the upright of heart;
but the crooked and those who do evil, drive them away!
On Israel, peace!                                                                          Response

Gospel Acclamation         Mt 11: 28
Alleluia, alleluia!
Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
Alleluia.

GOSPEL             

The Lord be with you.          And with your spirit
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke           6: 20-26       Glory to you, O Lord.
Rejoice when that day comes, your reward will be great in heaven

Fixing his eyes on his disciples Jesus said:
‘How happy are you who are poor: yours is the kingdom of God.
Happy you who are hungry now: you shall be satisfied.
Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh.
‘Happy are you when people hate you, drive you out, abuse you,
denounce your name as criminal,
on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice when that day comes and dance for joy, for then your reward will be great in heaven.

The Gospel of the Lord.           Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.


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Gospel Reflection          All the Saints of Ireland         Luke 6:20-26

The gospel reading for this feast of 'all the saints of Ireland' is the beatitudes as found in the gospel of Luke. They are less familiar to us that the beatitudes as found in Matthew, and, perhaps, more difficult to come to terms with. In what sense are the poor, the hungry, the weeping, the persecuted, happy or blessed? They are happy because, according to Jesus, God is close to them and is working to reverse their miserable situation, ‘yours is the kingdom of God… you shall be satisfied… you shall laugh… your reward will be great in heaven’. Is it the case then that they should accept their plight in the hope that all will be well in the next life? Jesus’ words and actions in this gospel of Luke as a whole would not suggest so.

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, Lazarus is certainly poor, hungry and weeping. He had no one who tried to improve his situation, even though the rich man on the other side of the gate could have transformed his miserable state with just a little effort. Beyond death, God not only improved his situation, but completely reversed it. At the banquet of Abraham, he enjoyed the hospitality of the kingdom of God; he was satisfied and joyful. Yet, the clear message of the parable is that Lazarus should not have had to wait until after his death for his situation to be reversed. God wanted and expected the rich man to begin to do for Lazarus what God did for him in the kingdom of God.

Luke’s gospel as a whole is clear that God wants the work of reversing the situation of the most vulnerable to begin in the here and now. Throughout his ministry, Jesus powerfully revealed this hospitable, transformative, love of God to those who found themselves living on the margins. He looks to his disciples to do the same. The saints were those through whom God’s hospitable, welcoming, love began to transform the lives of those in greatest need. Because of their lives, the kingdom of God was not just a future hope but was also something of a present reality for those who longed for its coming.

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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd. and used with the permission of the publishers.  http://dltbooks.com/
The Scripture Reflection is made available with our thanks from his book Reflections on the Weekday Readings  : The Word is near to you, on your lips and in your heart by Martin Hogan and published by Messenger Publications  c/f www.messenger.ie/bookshop/

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Saints of the Day: Nov 6th ; All our Irish saints.
The early Irish Martyrologies and the Stowe Missal give a firm basis for devotion to the saints of Ireland. The feast celebrates the gifts and the glory of God in his saints, their sharing in the paschal mystery of Christ, our communion with them in Christ, their example and their intercession for us, a pilgrim Church, the sustaining power of the Eucharist, the hope of eternal life.

Pope Benedict XV beatified Oliver Plunkett in 1920 and during his papacy (1914-22)  the 'Feast of All the Saints of Ireland' was instituted.  It recalls especially the seventeen Irish Martyrs of the 16th and 17th centuries who were beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1992 and many others who died as a result of persecution during what in Ireland are known as the "Penal Times".

Patrick Duffy comments on the significance of the feast.

Our Four Canonised Saints
Only four Irish saints: Ss Malachy (1094-1148), Lawrence O'Toole (1128-80) Oliver Plunkett (1625-81) and Charles of Mount Argus (1821-93), have been officially canonised. All the other Irish saints, such as Ss Patrick, Brigid, and Colmcille, are saints, as it were, by' acclamation' of the local Church, before the official papal canonisation process was established. Recently we have had quite a few beatifications.

Canonisation
"Canonisation" as a process can be said to have begun when the name of a martyr was included in the dyptichs (or prayer lists) proclaimed by the deacon during Mass. This process would have been overseen by the local Church authority, especially the bishop. Later the names of holy people who were not martyrs, such as Ss Hilarion and Ephrem the Syrian in the East, and Saints Martin of Tours and Hilary of Poitiers in the West, were included. But it was only in 1170 that Alexander III issued a decree arrogating to the Pope alone the right to declare a person a saint as regards the Church of the West. This was confirmed in 1200 by a bull of Pope Innocent III.

Other Irish 'Saints'
The scope of this feast, while it includes canonised saints, is wider. It also includes those who had a 'reputation for holiness' and whose causes for canonisation have not yet been completed, such as Bl. Thaddeus Mac Carthy (1455-92), the seventeen Irish martyrs of the 16th and 17th centuries, Bl Edmund Ignatius Rice (1762-1844), Bl Columba Marmion (1858-1923) and the Servant of God Matt Talbot (1856-1925) and people like Legion of Mary envoys Edel Quinn and Alfie Lamb, whose causes have already been introduced. But it also includes those whose lives of sanctity were known only to their families, friends or members of their parish diocese or religious community.

Exchange of Spiritual Goods
Like All Saints (1 Nov) and All Souls (2 Nov), this is a celebration of the' communio sanctorum,' that is, a sharing, not only of the "holy persons" (sancti and sanctae), but also of the "holy things" (sancta).
As the Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium on the Church of Vatican II taught:
"So it is that the union of the wayfarers with the brethren who sleep in the peace of Christ is in no way interrupted, but on the contrary, according to the constant faith of the Church, this union is reinforced by an exchange of spiritual goods" (LG 49).

Island of Saints and Scholars
 The reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus 44:1-15 echoes the theme of "the island of saints and scholars" which was so strong in Ireland in the first half of the twentieth century
Let us praise illustrious men (and women), our ancestors in their successive generations. The Lord has created an abundance of glory, and displayed his greatness from earliest times.

(The Book of Kells (image right>) is believed to have been created sometime around 800A.D, when Ireland was said to be the 'Island of Saints and Scholars'.) It can be viewed in Trinity College, Dublin

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Memorable Saying for Today

Every saint has a past & every sinner a future.

~ Oscar Wilde ~ 

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09-11- The Dedication of the St John Lateran Basilica, Rome

The Lateran Basilica is one of the four great Basilicas of Rome. The original Basilica was erected by the first Christian Emperor:  Constantine. Until the time of Constantine there were no public buildings called 'churches.' Worshippers met in people's houses. Until then this hillside site in Rome was the location of two monasteries called after 'St John the Divine', and 'St John the Baptist'. It is the Cathedral church of Rome and, also the church of the Pope, Bishop of Rome. For all these reasons, it has come to be known as the mother- church of Christendom. 

Feast of the Day:09-11- The Dedication of the St John Lateran Basilica, Rome
C/f history of today’s Feast can be found below today’s Readings and Reflection

FIRST READING         

A reading from the prophet Ezekiel     47:1-2. 8-9. 12
I saw a stream of water coming from the Temple, bringing life to all wherever it flowed.

The Angel brought me back to the entrance of the Temple, where a stream came out from under the Temple threshold and flowed eastwards, since the Temple faced east. The water flowed from under the right side of the Temple, south of the altar. He took me out by the north gate and led me right round outside as far as the outer east gate where the water flowed out on the right-hand side.

He said, 'This water flows east down to the Arabah and to the sea; and flowing into the sea it makes its waters wholesome. Wherever the river flows, all living creatures teeming in it will live. Fish will be very plentiful, for wherever the water goes it brings health, and life teems wherever the river flows. Along the river, on either bank, will grow every kind of fruit tree with leaves that never wither and fruit that never fails; they will bear new fruit every month, because this water comes from the sanctuary. And their fruit will be good to eat and the leaves medicinal.'

The Word of the Lord.      Thanks be to God.

Responsorial Psalm         Ps45:2-3,5-6,8-9 R.v.5
Response                               The waters of a river give joy to God’s city,
                                                 the holy place where the Most High dwells.

1. God is for us a refuge and strength, a helper close at hand, in time of distress:
so we shall not fear though the earth should rock, though the mountains fall into the depths of the sea. Response

2. The waters of a river give joy to God’s city, the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within, it cannot be shaken; God will help it at the dawning of the day.                                               Response

3 The Lord of hosts is with us: the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
Come, consider the works of the Lord, the redoubtable deeds he has done on the earth.                              Response

SECOND READING  (or Alternative First Reading)             

A reading from the first letter of St Paul to the Corinthians         3:9-11. 16-17 
You are the temple of God.

You are God's building.
By the grace God gave me, I succeeded as an architect and laid the foundations, on which someone else is doing the building. Everyone doing the building must work carefully. For the foundation, nobody can lay any other than the one which has already been laid, that is Jesus Christ.

Didn't you realise that you were God's temple and that the Spirit of God was living among you? If anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy him, because the temple of God is sacred;
and you are that temple.

The Word of the Lord.    Thanks be to God.


Gospel Acclamation          2 Chron 7:16
Alleluia, alleluia!
I have chosen and consecrated this house, says the Lord, for my name to be there for ever.
Alleluia!

GOSPEL     

The Lord be with you              And with your spirit.
A reading from the Gospel according to John  2:13-22    Glory to you, O Lord

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John        2:13-22
He was speaking of the sanctuary that was his body.

Just before the Jewish Passover Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and in the Temple he found people selling cattle and sheep and pigeons, and the money changers sitting at their counters there. Making a whip out of some cord, he drove them all out of the Temple, cattle and sheep as well, scattered the money changers' coins, knocked their tables over and said to the pigeon-sellers,
'Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father's house into a market.'
Then his disciples remembered the words of scripture: 'Zeal for your house will devour me.'
The Jews intervened and said, 'What sign can you show us to justify what you have done?'
Jesus answered, 'Destroy this sanctuary, and in three days I will raise it up'.
The Jews replied, 'It has taken forty-six years to build this sanctuary:
are you going to raise it up in three days?'
But he was speaking of the sanctuary that was his body, and when Jesus rose from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the words he had said.

The Gospel of the Lord.            Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

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1. Gospel Reflection     9th November.    The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, Rome       John 2:13-22

Writing to the church in Corinth about thirty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus, Paul says to them, in the words of today’s first reading, ‘You are God’s building… God’s temple’. For Paul, it was the Christian community, rather than any physical building, that was the place of God’s presence in the world.

In the gospel reading, Jesus points to himself as the Temple of God. He, more than any human being, is the place of God’s presence in the world. As individuals and as a community we look to the Lord to help us to be the place of God’s presence in the world, to be church, in that sense. We gather in a building we call a church, to open ourselves to the presence of the Lord, so that we can become more fully the church of God, the body of Christ, the place of God’s presence in our world.
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The Scripture Readings are taken from The Jerusalem Bible, published 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd Ltd. and used with the permission of the publishers.  http://dltbooks.com/
The Scripture Reflection is made available with our thanks from Reflections on the Weekday Readings : Your word is a lamp for my feet and light for my path by Martin Hogan and published by Messenger Publications  c/f www.messenger.ie/bookshop/

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Feast of the Day:  November 9; The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. Further reflections.

Patrick Duffy provides some of it's brief history and commentary.

Dedication of the Church (Basilica) of St John on the Lateran. This Papal Archbasilica of St John  was dedicated to Christ the Saviour in the fourth century. The anniversary has been celebrated as a feast of the Latin Church on this date since the twelfth century. It honours the local Church of Rome as a link with earliest Christian tradition and as a sign of our communion in Christ.

Although the Pope lives in the Vatican and in the shadow of St Peter's Basilica,
the Basilica of St John Lateran is The Cathedral of the Most Holy Saviour and of Ss John the Baptist and the Evangelist in the Lateran is also known as the Papal Archbasilica of Saint John.

*It is considered the mother church of the Roman Catholic faithful, traditionally known as 'the Pope’s church' i.e.
*the cathedral church of the diocese of Rome, where the Bishop of Rome presided in the 'old days'.
*The pope is still it's bishop.
* It has as its patrons Ss John the Evangelist and John the Baptist.
*This cathedral is the seat of papal authority and therefore is, the parish church of Catholics everywhere.
*Since the 7th century it has also been known as the 'Basilica of the Most Holy Saviour, Jesus '-   it is dedicated to him.

Patrick Duffy provides some of it's brief history.

The Lateran Palace
The Lateran Palace in Rome originally belonged to the Laterani family, who served as administrators to several emperors, but Nero confiscated it. When Constantine became emperor, he built the Lateran Basilica in the fourth century on land that had belonged to the Laterani family (hence the name ‘Lateran’). he gave it over to the Church for a synod and as  the Cathedral of Rome . 


The Basilica
‘Basilica’ is the word given to an early form of building used for Christian worship.  It was modelled on the Roman Basilica - a building used as a law court and a commercial exchange. At first the name ‘basilica’ was used of churches which resembled the Roman building, but now the title of ‘basilica’ is given by the pope to certain privileged churches both in Rome and throughout the world.

Pope Sylvester I (314-335) then had the basilica (which literally means a royal hall for transacting business or legal matters).  It soon became the cathedral of the Church of Rome and the seat of the popes for a thousand years.  It was the residence of the popes until 1308. Ecumenical councils, all called Lateran, were held there: in 1123, 1139, 1179, 1215 and 1512-17. While the popes were absent from Rome in Avignon (1305-1403), the Basilica fell into disrepair. The popes did not return to live there, but resided first at the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere, then later at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major, and now at the Vatican.

Restoration 
The palace was restored by Pope Sixtus V (Felice Peretti 1585-90). Pope Innocent X (Giovanni Battista Pamphili 1644-55) commissioned the present structure of the basilica in 1646 and Pope Clement XII (Lorenzo Corsini 1730-40) gave it a grand new façade in 1735.

[caption id="attachment_52631" align="aligncenter" width="350"] (This is a souvenir copy of the creation of the Vatican State by the Lateran Pacts with Its “trinity” of King Victor Emmanuel III, Pope Pius XI and Benito Mussolini.)[/caption]

The Lateran Treaty 1929
In 1929 the Lateran Treaty was signed in the Lateran Palace by Mussolini and Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Gasparri. Today the palace houses the Vicariate and offices of the diocese of Rome which Pope John XXIII located there.

[caption id="attachment_35238" align="alignright" width="272"] The late Bishop of Rome, and Pope of the Universal Church,  Pope Francis prayed in his parish Church, the Lateran Basilica regularly.[/caption]

The Basilica Today
St John Lateran is the cathedral of the diocese of Rome where the Bishop of Rome presides, especially on Holy Thursday for the Chrism Mass. One of Rome’s most imposing churches, the Lateran’s towering facade is crowned with 15 colossal statues - Christ, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist and 12 doctors of the Church. Beneath its high altar rest the remains of the small wooden table on which tradition holds St. Peter himself celebrated Mass.

Relevance of the Feast
We are all members of our own local church, work for the universal kingdom of Christ,  are also members of this "mother-church" in Rome.

The dedication of churches can be traced back to the Jewish practice of dedicating the Temple in Jerusalem to God. Once a Temple had been dedicated, there was a feast each year to celebrate the anniversary of the dedication. This feast was celebrated not only in Jerusalem but in every synagogue as well. Similarly, and now every Western Catholic church observes the dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome.

This feast helps us move beyond our narrow geographical confines to a sense of the universal Church. See also 18th November, the Dedication of the Churches of St Peter and St Paul.

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Memorable Advice for Today

Stop looking for the perfect church. It does not exist. It is not there.
Even if it did exist, the moment you or I joined it , it would no longer be perfect!

~Nicky Gumbel ~ 

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