What’s In a Name?

Gratia Vobis Ministries, Inc.

“The Lord called me from birth, From my mother’s womb he gave me my name.” The Lord has called each one of us, in our different capacities, to further the Kingdom of God. After reading the scriptures of today several times, what stood out to me were three very different and yet very significant figures…

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Mercy

Today’s lesson is all about mercy. The responsorial psalm says “Lord, do not deal with us according to our sins.” The act of mercy necessitates two major requirements. One would be to ask for it, in a humble and contrite way, as the prophet Daniel did in the first reading. He humbly admitted “we have…

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Go Make a Difference

Yesterday we celebrated the conversion of St. Paul, and what a dramatic conversion it was! From being such a ferocious persecutor of Christians, he turned into the most fervent disciple of Jesus. And his fervor was not limited to just traveling and preaching to the people of distant lands, but like a loving, caring father,…

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Speak Truth

Merry Christmas everyone! Yesterday, we celebrated the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, and today we are brought to reality with the martyrdom of St. Stephen, the very first martyr of the newly formed Catholic Church. He was stoned to death in Jerusalem, shortly after the death and resurrection of Christ. Jerusalem, the holy city…

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Christ the King

Are you a sheep or a goat? Opt to be a sheep and strive to enter through the narrow gate! Today we celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. This feast was instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925 to celebrate the Jubilee Year and the 16th centenary of the…

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Free Yourselves from Sin

There have been many times in the recent past that I have wondered about how God feels when He looks down upon the earth and sees the behavior of human beings; those He created in His own image and likeness. Must He not be shaking his head in dismay and bewilderment? How is it that…

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Cosmas and Damian

Today I’m going to focus on the optional Memorial readings at Mass, commemorating the saints Cosmas and Damian, my patron saints. According to Wikipedia, Cosmas and Damian were third century, twin, Arabian born brothers who became physicians. They practiced their profession in the seaport of Aegeae, then in the Roman province of Syria. Cosmas and…

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Blessed Are Those Who Fear Him

Yesterday we began our readings from the Book of Ruth, which started off like a fairytale … “Once in the time of the judges, there was a famine in the land;” We hear of a man from Bethlehem departing with his wife and two sons to live on the plateau of Moab. The man’s name…

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Be Ready to Grow

What kind of a plant are you? A little flowering rose? A big tree with lots of delicious fruit hanging on the branches? A little weed, which for some strange reason my little dog likes to nibble? I hope you are a big fruitful Catholic tree, providing goodness and beauty to all who come under…

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Jesus Said

For the past one week, we have been reading from Matthew’s Gospel, and every one of them started with: “Jesus said to his disciples”: “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.”…

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