MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for week of October 12, 2008

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: To provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Committed to work to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality


On Sunday (28th Ordinary Time Sunday Cycle A) we read in the Gospel of Matthew about the feast that is prepared but some refuse to attend. After being rejected, the King according to the parable, goes out and welcomes those who might have never been considered to come to the table...the good and bad alike. The story also reminds us that even though we are invited to the banquet, and graciously attend, we still must be ready for the experience. We must truly say "yes" to the invitation. We must be open to the Kingdom here and now. In the first reading from Isaiah, we hear about that day when all death and suffering will end, and the Kingdom of God will reign.

In Catholic Charities, we as the Church work on the margins of society. We often encounter those who do not want to help their brothers and sisters by refusing to give to those in need; many times, however, we encounter people who give much or a little though very generously, and truly want to be there in solidarity with those who are poor and vulnerable. We also encounter on a daily basis the face of Christ seeking help in the people we serve, the good and bad alike. In these encounters we are experiencing a foretaste of that great banquet of the Kingdom of God here now and in the future. For many, Catholic Charities is that foretaste of love and acceptance that the Kingdom requires. We must constantly say "yes" to be and experience ourselves that invitation.



Some important date(s) this week:

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15. St. Teresa of Avila. (1515-1582) Teresa lived in an age of exploration as well as political, social and religious upheaval. It was the 16th century, a time of turmoil and reform. Her life began with the culmination of the Protestant Reformation, and ended shortly after the Council of Trent. The gift of God to Teresa in and through which she became holy and left her mark on the Church and the world is threefold: She was a woman; she was a contemplative; she was an active reformer. In 1970 the Church gave her the title she had long held in the popular mind: Doctor of the Church. She and St. Catherine of Siena were the first women so honored.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16. St. Marguerite d'Youville (1701-1771) Born in Varennes, Canada, Marie Marguerite Dufrost de Lajemmerais had to interrupt her schooling at the age of 12 to help her widowed mother. Eight years later she married Francois d'Youville; they had six children, four of whom died young. Despite the fact that her husband gambled, sold liquor illegally to Native Americans and treated her indifferently, she cared for him compassionately in the two years before his death in 1730. Even though she was caring for two small children and running a store to help pay off her husband's debts, Marguerite still helped the poor. Once her children were grown, she and several companions rescued a Quebec hospital which was in danger of failing. She called her community the Institute of the Sisters of Charity of Montreal; the people called them the "Grey Nuns" because of the color of their habit. Pope John XXIII, who beatified her in 1959, called her the "Mother of Universal Charity." She was canonized in 1990.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 18. St. Luke. Luke wrote one of the major portions of the New Testament, a two-volume work comprising the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. In the two books he shows the parallel between the life of Christ and that of the Church. He is the only Gentile Christian among the Gospel writers. Tradition holds him to be a native of Antioch, and Paul calls him "our beloved physician" (Colossians 4:14). His Gospel was probably written between A.D. 70 and 85.

PAPAL INTENTIONS:

OCTOBER 2008
General:
That the Synod of Bishops may help bishops and theologians as well as catechists and pastoral workers engaged in the service of the Word of God transmit with courage the truth of the faith in communion with the entire Church.
Mission:
That in this month dedicated to the missions, through the promotional activities of the Pontifical Missionary Works and other organisms, the Christian may feel the need to participate in the Church’s universal mission with prayer, sacrifice and concrete help.

Corporal Works of Mercy: The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead


See our website at www.catholiccharitiesyoungstown.org for links to the our ministries and services.

For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at: http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com/