July 4 - Friday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I
The BreadCast
(Gn.23:1-4,19,24:1-8,62-67; Ps.106:1-5; Mt.9:9-13) “In his love for [Rebekah] Isaac found solace after the death of his mother Sarah.” And of this love Jacob shall be born; and from him shall come the twelve tribes of Israel, who shall people the earth as the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham. Sarah had died and “Abraham had now reached a ripe old age.” Now conscious of his mortality, Abraham sets his sights firmly on his son and his coming progeny. Now with great resolve he sets to seek a wife for Isaac, telling his servant as he sends...
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July 3 - Prayer to St. Thomas
The BreadCast
O believing apostle who declared the divinity of Jesus, our Lord and our God, all doubt disappears in the light of your faith, for we see with you what is beyond all eyes – pray for an increase in our faltering faith, that we shall indeed believe though we do not see; let it be as if we ourselves have touched the nail marks in His hands and feet and placed our hands into His side. So firmly let our faith be founded that we shall reach out to all mankind and the truth of Christ as the Son of God will grow in all hearts until that Day we see the Lord with our own eyes.
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July 3 - St. Thomas
The BreadCast
(Eph.2:19-22; Ps.117:1-2,Mk.16:15; Jn.20:24-29) “Blest are they who have not seen and have believed.” The faith of Thomas. By his faith we find faith. In his desire to know beyond all doubt that the Lord has risen, all our doubt is taken away, and we declare with him, “My Lord and my God!” If Thomas had not doubted so much, we would not believe so much his clear proclamation of the divinity of Jesus. As it is, we no longer have room for doubt. Indeed, Thomas’ ardent need to touch the nail marks in the Lord’s hands and...
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July 2 - Wednesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I
The BreadCast
(Gn.21:5,8-20; Ps.34:7-8,10-13; Mt.8:28-34) “When the afflicted man called out, the Lord heard, and from all his distress He saved him.” Ishmael is the model of the afflicted man calling out to the Lord and being heard in all his distress. His very name means “he whom God hears” and indeed we see clearly today how, though “it is through Isaac that descendants shall bear [Abraham’s] name,” nonetheless, the Lord has pity on Ishmael and his plight – his rejection by the mother of the promised child and his wandering in a trackless waste – and...
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July 1 - Prayer to Junipero Serra
The BreadCast
O missionary of the New World inspired to leave your classroom and go forth to win souls for Christ, despite continuous battles with cold and hunger and long journeys with an injured leg, praying throughout the...
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July 1 - Tuesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I
The BreadCast
(Gn.19:15-29; Ps.26:2-3,9-12; Mt.8:23-27) “Even the winds and the sea obey Him.” “The Lord rained down sulphurous fire upon Sodom and Gomorrah,” and “without warning a violent storm came up on the lake, and the boat began to be swamped by the waves.” The Lord saved Lot from the destruction of Sodom, and Jesus calmed the winds and the sea, saving the disciples; but how little faith either showed in His power. Lot seems oblivious to the annihilation about to be wrought by God, hesitating to flee even at the urging of...
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June 30 - Prayer to the First Martyrs of the Holy Roman Church
The BreadCast
O first of souls to shed blood, whose sacrifice began the great persecution, you indeed handed your bodies over to torture, to the mad king of this dark world, but everlasting reward you have gained for yourselves and for the Church; your robes washed clean in the blood of the Lamb, you served to nourish the growth of the people of God – pray your holy offering shall always be remembered, that the Church in this day and in all days may be blessed by your witness of faith, that you might light our path to Heaven until our crucified Lord returns again to gather all of faith and courage into...
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June 30 - Monday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I
The BreadCast
(Gn.18:16-33; Ps.103:1-4,8-11; Mt.8:18-22) “While the two men walked on farther toward Sodom, the Lord remained standing before Abraham.” “Then Abraham drew nearer to Him…” A marvelous scene. First, as Abraham walks along with the Lord, we hear the Lord’s thoughts. The Lord wishes to share His plans with him, not to act apart from His blessed one. He tells Abraham of the imminent destruction of Sodom, knowing he will be concerned for his kinsman, Lot. The Lord then stops and stands still, granting Abraham...
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June 29 - Prayer to Sts. Peter and Paul
The BreadCast
O most blessed apostles of the Lord upon whom the Church is founded and the faith goes forth, in you we cannot be shaken and the Lord’s reign extends to the ends of the earth – pray we always take refuge in His House and in the teaching of His mouth. It is you who preserve the authenticity of the faith; through you we may be assured the Spirit of God is with us, leading us out of the dark prison of this world along the narrow path to Heaven. Pray the chains fall from our hands and we heed the angel’s command, remaining faithful to the end, pouring out our lives like a libation. Feed the...
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June 29 - Sts. Peter and Paul
The BreadCast
Acts 12:1-11; Ps.34:2-9; 2Tm.4:6-8,17-18; Mt.16:13-19) “On this rock I will build my Church, and the jaws of death shall not prevail against it.” We go through death to life, for death has no power over us: the power of Jesus founded firmly on Peter, brought forward by Paul, and present in all the members of the Church and in its faith, has conquered death and leads us all to heaven. Today we celebrate the solid foundation of the Church in Peter, the man of faith, first of the apostles and rock upon whom we are firmly set; and Paul,...
info_outline(Eph.2:19-22; Ps.117:1-2,Mk.16:15; Jn.20:24-29)
“Blest are they who have not seen and have believed.”
The faith of Thomas. By his faith we find faith. In his desire to know beyond all doubt that the Lord has risen, all our doubt is taken away, and we declare with him, “My Lord and my God!” If Thomas had not doubted so much, we would not believe so much his clear proclamation of the divinity of Jesus. As it is, we no longer have room for doubt. Indeed, Thomas’ ardent need to touch the nail marks in the Lord’s hands and sides is a cry to believe as firmly as bedrock, and indeed his declaration of faith is the strongest in all Scripture. “My Lord and my God!” In this we take refuge.
And how beautifully Paul speaks today of the faith, of the Church wherein we take refuge and dwell as one with “all the saints and members of the household of God… with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.” It is architectural fact that in the cornerstone “the whole structure is fitted together and takes shape”; first it is laid, and then the rest of the foundation extends from it, giving the foundation its direction, its form. And, of course, the entire building rests on and is supported by this cornerstone and foundation. And so is the Church. Christ is our cornerstone around which we are all formed, and the apostles, those who have seen Him and proclaimed His glory, are the foundation upon which our faith rests. And we are all one structure, all made one in faith by the apostles and, of course, by the Lord, who is present in every stone of the building.
Let us firm up our faith this day, brothers and sisters. Wherever we may be throughout the world and at whatever time, let us feel beneath our feet the solid foundation upon which we are built and the blessed cornerstone which is its very source and so the source of all the life and the faith within us. Let us indeed be “built into this temple” and so become temples ourselves, knowing the surpassing blessing of becoming “a dwelling place for God in the Spirit.” “A dwelling place for God in the Spirit”: my brothers and sisters, can there be a more marvelous call? Let us have the faith of Thomas, crying out “My Lord and my God!” each day of our lives and in all we think, say, and do. Let this faith permeate our very beings and we shall find ourselves standing firmly in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ and in His kingdom, which is beyond all that eye can see.
Written, read & chanted by James Kurt; produced by Carie Fortney.
Music by Carie Fortney; used by permission.
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O LORD, let us be blessed to know you
with a deep faith,
and so be built into your Temple.
YHWH, how good, how kind, how faithful you are to us! For we are built into the Body of your only Son with the saints of Heaven and become as your holy Temple. What more could we ask for, what more could we desire, than to be one with your apostles, upon whose faith your Church is founded? Let us find our place in Jesus, the Christ.
You are God and your Son is God and we may become one with you, O God, if we but have faith in your surpassing glory, in your goodness and kindness toward us – in your Son who stands before us. Jesus is LORD as you are LORD and we become as you are when we praise your glory and declare your Lordship over us.
You are our LORD and our God. Jesus is our LORD and our God. May your Spirit be with us, O LORD, to fit us well into your Temple, into your Church, which rises this day on the foundation of your holy apostles. Alleluia!