Daily Retreat 11/03/08
2008 Nov 3 Mon: Ordinary Weekday/ Martin de Porres, r (Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time)
Phil 2: 1-4/ Ps 130(131): 1bcde. 2. 3/ Lk 14: 12-14
From today’s readings: “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing.... In You, O Lord, I have found my peace.... When you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind....”
Heartwarming
Although the letter to the Philippians is by no means Paul’s longest epistle, it is certainly one of his most oft quoted - as you read through the four brief chapters, you’ll come across many inspirational lines that will probably sound quite familiar - I’ll bet you’ll even find some of your own favorite Bible verses. And there’s good reason for this popularity! Philippians is Paul’s warmest letter - there’s this magnificent sense of how he’s so grateful for the times the Philippians have cooperated in his ministry, how they’ve listened to his words, how they’ve focused on those things that are true and just and beautiful – all the most important things in life.
And there’s rejoicing – in fact, that word “rejoice” is a regular refrain, ringing throughout this epistle more than in any other book of the New Testament. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice! This very verse is so insistent that it gave name to Gaudete Sunday - that third Sunday of Advent, when Christmas is so near and the third candle of the Advent wreath is lit, which, you will note, is generally a pink candle, precisely as a festive sign of this rejoicing that “the Lord is at hand,” since that taper’s hue of rose cheerfully contrasts with the more somber purple color of the Advent season.
So if you ever have a sense of being down and out, and depressed, and the feeling that the world’s an awful place, read this epistle and warm up to some very practical advice and the inspirational appreciation that Paul had for the Philippians, and his reminder of what it’s all about-the beautiful good news that is meant to permeate every aspect of our life.
Phil 2: 1-4/ Ps 130(131): 1bcde. 2. 3/ Lk 14: 12-14
From today’s readings: “If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing.... In You, O Lord, I have found my peace.... When you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind....”
Heartwarming
Although the letter to the Philippians is by no means Paul’s longest epistle, it is certainly one of his most oft quoted - as you read through the four brief chapters, you’ll come across many inspirational lines that will probably sound quite familiar - I’ll bet you’ll even find some of your own favorite Bible verses. And there’s good reason for this popularity! Philippians is Paul’s warmest letter - there’s this magnificent sense of how he’s so grateful for the times the Philippians have cooperated in his ministry, how they’ve listened to his words, how they’ve focused on those things that are true and just and beautiful – all the most important things in life.
And there’s rejoicing – in fact, that word “rejoice” is a regular refrain, ringing throughout this epistle more than in any other book of the New Testament. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice! This very verse is so insistent that it gave name to Gaudete Sunday - that third Sunday of Advent, when Christmas is so near and the third candle of the Advent wreath is lit, which, you will note, is generally a pink candle, precisely as a festive sign of this rejoicing that “the Lord is at hand,” since that taper’s hue of rose cheerfully contrasts with the more somber purple color of the Advent season.
So if you ever have a sense of being down and out, and depressed, and the feeling that the world’s an awful place, read this epistle and warm up to some very practical advice and the inspirational appreciation that Paul had for the Philippians, and his reminder of what it’s all about-the beautiful good news that is meant to permeate every aspect of our life.
posted by FrPitstick | 11/02/2008
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