Saint Isidore the farmer
H. Axel Hernandez, L.C.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our King, Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Lord, help me to trust You without limits.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to John 15, 12-17
At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one for his friends than this, that he lay down his life for them. You are my friends, if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I call you friends, for I have made known to you all that I have heard from my Father.
It is not you who have chosen me, it is I who have chosen you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that the Father may grant you whatever you ask him in my name. This is what I command you, that you love one another”.
Word of the Lord.
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
To be a Christian is the opposite of being indifferent. The noblest and most virtuous act man can do is to love. When we love, we imitate God and advance towards our fullness: to be the image and likeness of God.
The novelty of Christianity is to have found God who is close and willing to do everything for us, with the exception of touching our freedom. Many will question God's goodness when they encounter human injustices and tragedies. These people must be taught the crucifix: God made man for man's sake and crucified for man's sake. Evidently evil has a great impact on our lives. The Lord did not come to exempt us from suffering, but to teach us how much he loves us and to show us his unconditional love and closeness. It is up to us to accept it.
Charity is the very mark of Christianity. It is to bear witness to our encounter with the living Christ. He alone fills our deepest longings and strengthens us to continue our journey towards Him. Let us take advantage of this quarantine to live by our deepest convictions and grow in trust and love for God. Let us seek the Lord of sweets and not his sweets. Let us be light for those around us. Let us remain united in the Lord. Let us carry the Lord by loving as He does: living charity day by day with those around us.
«Catholics know well that “in concrete situations, and taking into account the solidarities that each one lives, it is necessary to recognize a legitimate variety of possible options. The same Christian faith can lead to different commitments”. For this reason, I invite you to live your faith with great freedom. Without ever believing that there is only one form of political commitment for Catholics. A Catholic party. Perhaps this was a first intuition in the awakening of the Social Doctrine of the Church that with the passing of the years was adjusted to what really has to be the vocation of the politician today in society, I say Christian. The Catholic party is no more. In politics it is better to have a polyphony in politics inspired by the same faith and built with multiple sounds and instruments, than a boring monochord melody apparently correct, but homogenizing and neutralizing -and de yapa- still. No, it doesn't go.»
(Address of H.H. Francis, March 4, 2019).
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
Do an ingenious act of charity: Call someone in need, etc.
Farewell
We thank You, Lord, for all Your benefits, You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
