Saturday July 1, 2023
For you this week:
- Reflection for Saturday: Father God’s role in the Holy Mass
- Inside the Ministry: My Soul Shall Be Healed
- This week’s WordBytes faith-builder: Why is Mass the best way to progress in the spiritual life?
- This week’s recommended video: Going Deeper Into Holy Mass
This week’s Trivia Challenge: What are the visible and invisible dimensions of the Eucharist? (Check your answer at the end of this newsletter.)
Saturday July 1, 2023
Genesis 18:1-15
Luke 1:46-50, 53-55
Matthew 8:5-17
bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070123.cfm
Podcast:
bible.usccb.org/podcasts/audio/daily-mass-reading-podcast-july-1-2023
Saints Calendar:
gnm.org/saints-find/saints-calendar
He said to him, “I will come and cure him.” The centurion said in reply, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant will be healed.” (From Saturday’s Gospel reading)
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Reflection for Saturday:
Father God’s role in the Holy Mass
Have you noticed that all of the prayers led by the priest during Mass are directed to God as our Father? Participate in the Mass with this in mind. Remain aware of how you and the priest are speaking to the Father.
Many of the prayers of the Eucharistic Liturgy are about Jesus, not to Jesus. The prayers are directed to the Father. Have you noticed that? In fact, the entire celebration of Mass is an intimate dialog with the Father:
- The first hymn, which unites the children of God in song, begins the conversation. Do you sing? It doesn’t matter to Abba-Father what your voice sounds like. Remember, he gave you that voice and meant for it to sing praises that glorify him in an exchange of love. If you’re off-key, so what? The Father is delighted that you’ve opened your mouth.
- In the Penitential Rite, we seek the Father’s forgiveness for our sins—and he readily gives it. Have you prepared for this by bringing to mind your sins? The opportunity for this is usually so short during Mass that it’s important we think about it before arriving at church.
- Abba-Father speaks to us through the Holy Spirit as we listen to the scriptures and the homily. But what if the homily is boring or off-topic? Abba-Father wants to give you the best possible experience of his active involvement in your worship, so expect the Holy Spirit to deliver a message that comes directly from the heart of the Father — even if it is spoken only within your heart.
- During the intercessory prayers, we give to our Father the needs of others. None of the prayers about us (the people) are directed to Jesus. They all go directly to the Father through Jesus.
- The miracle of the Eucharist occurs because of the Father. It is the Father who gives Jesus to us by transforming bread and wine into the Body and Blood of our Savior. It happens when the priest asks the Holy Spirit to come down upon the bread and wine (during the prayers of consecration):
Therefore, O Lord, we humbly implore You by the same Spirit: Graciously make holy these gifts we have brought to You for consecration, that they may become the Body and Blood of Your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, at whose command we celebrate these mysteries. (from Eucharistic Prayers III)
By the time we say the “amen” that acknowledges our belief in the truth of this, we have been transformed. By the grace of God, we have been purified. Now, in receiving and consuming Jesus in the Eucharist, we are temporarily detached from this world. We are fully united to God, however briefly it might last.
This is not a moment to be squandered. Enjoy it! Be conscious of the presence of your Divine Daddy. He is very delighted that you are here and that you have chosen to worship him and enter into the mysteries of Christ’s purifying, Eucharistic gift.
For more on this, read my book The Father’s Heart. See tothefathersheart.com. (This article is an excerpt from the book.)
Inside the Ministry:
My Soul Shall Be Healed
Sales are growing! People are buying my book for parish study groups.
The U.S. Catholic bishops are calling for Eucharistic Revival because (shockingly) only 31% of Catholics believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The goal of parish efforts in adult faith formation now is to “renew the Church by enkindling a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ in the holy Eucharist.” The revival is meant to inspire people to encounter Jesus in the Eucharist.
That’s why I turned my old course on Saint John Paul II’s encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia into a book. It’s one of the courses on papal documents that I taught in a seminary in Malawi on a very special mission trip in 2001.
The book My Soul Shall Be Healed will take you more fully into the mystery of the Eucharist and deepen your intimacy with Christ while enriching your celebration of Holy Mass. You’ll learn why Catholicism teaches that the Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life”. You’ll find out — with clarity — what Catholics believe and do not believe about the Eucharist. And you’ll gain a deep appreciation for the reason why only Catholic priests can consecrate the communion elements alongside the important role that the laity have, with the whole community, in the Eucharistic celebration.
Although my study guide is easy for individuals to use, it was designed for parish groups. Talk to your priest about it! If he’s interested in considering it for your parish, I’ll send him a free PDF copy. Or better yet, you buy the paperback book for him and place it in his hands when you start the conversation. This simple act could make a huge difference to many souls!
We can make this book available in Spanish, too, if at least one parish pre-orders 100 copies.
Find out more (there’s even a free PowerPoint for small group use!) @ gnm.org/terry-modica-author/my-soul-shall-be-healed. There, you can also look in on a lively discussion I had with Joy and Patrick Campbell on Joyful Hope TV, recorded in April 2022.
This week’s recommended faith-builder:
Why is Mass the best way to progress in the spiritual life?
What’s the easiest way to progress in the spiritual life? By witnessing miracles, because they enliven our faith. Where’s the most miraculous place on earth? The holy Catholic Mass! The Liturgy of the Eucharist.
I learned that lesson for the first time in 1988. I’d begun writing my book, Overcoming the Power of the Occult. Unusual things kept happening that prevented me from making much progress. I finally figured out that demons were interfering. I ran to Mass for respite.
The difference afterward in my writing was so noticeable that I returned to Mass the next day and the next, and soon I realized that daily Mass attendance made a significant difference, not only in the progress of my book but also in my personal growth.
For more on this, visit wordbytes.org/faqs/mass-best-way-to-progress.
WordBytes is a library of Catholic faith-building articles by Good News Ministries. Come on in and explore! Visit WordBytes.org today.
This week’s recommended video:
Going Deeper Into Holy Mass
This quick and easy video course is for those who want a deeper, personal relationship with Jesus during Mass. The entire Catholic liturgy is an encounter with the True Presence of Christ, and it should change us: We should be healed by it. We should feel loved and become more fully loving as a result of it. Our hearts should become more peaceful. Our tendencies to sin should be transformed into greater strength to resist sin. A true encounter with Christ makes a difference. This is what attending Mass is designed to do.
Begin now: Go Deeper Into Holy Mass @ gnm-media.org/category/go-deeper-into-holy-mass.
Answer to this week’s Trivia Challenge:
What are the visible and invisible dimensions of the Eucharist? The invisible dimension of the Eucharist is spiritual communion, which unites us by grace to God and to each other in faith, hope and love. The visible dimension is what gives witness to the world that spiritual communion is real. (This is explained in My Soul Shall Be Healed.)
God bless you!
Every morning, I lift up in prayer everyone who helps Good News Ministries in any way (donors, volunteers, prayer supporters, etc.) and all the prayer requests posted on our site. What can I cover in prayer for you? Post your prayer request.
How else can the team and I serve you today? Visit our homepage.
Thank you for reading this newsletter.
Your servant in Christ,
Terry Modica, Executive Director
Good News Ministries
gnm.org
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