The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. – Acts 17:24

Did you know?
      The average human body contains enough iron to make a three-inch nail, sulfur to kill all fleas on an average dog, carbon to make 900 pencils, potassium to fire a toy cannon, fat to make seven bars of soap, phosphorous to make 2,200 match heads and water to fill a ten-gallon tank.
      Snails produce a colorless, sticky discharge that forms a protective carpet under them as they travel along. The discharge is so effective that they can crawl along the edge of a razor without cutting themselves.
     Ginger has been clinically demonstrated to work twice as well as Dramamine for fighting motion sickness, with no side effects. There are more stars in space than there are specks of sand on the Earth.
      What a wonderful world we live in! I’ve voraciously read facts and trivia about science since I was a kid and I’m still learning new things every day. Although I was taught in school about Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, I think it’s foolish to believe that all things are just a result of an accident of nature, humans included. For me, such beauty and order can only be the result of a generous Creator who loves us so much that He provides the best for us! Cecille L.

REFLECTION:
Look around you and see all of God’s wondrous creations.

I am surrounded by the beauty of Your creations. Thank You, Lord.

P S A L M

Psalm 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14

R: Heaven and earth are full of your glory.

1 Praise the LORD from the heavens, praise him in the heights; 2 Praise him, all you his angels, praise him, all you his hosts. (R) 11 Let the kings of the earth and all peoples, the princes and all the judges of the earth, 12 young men too, and maidens, old men and boys. (R) 13 Praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; His majesty is above earth and heaven. (R) 14 He has lifted up the horn of his people. Be this his praise from all his faithful ones, from the children of Israel, the people close to him. Alleluia. (R)

G O S P E L

John 16:12-15

We live at a time where there is a crisis of truth in the world in that there are so many value systems competing for our approval. We need to make a choice and the only way we are going to be able to correctly discern the right choice will be with the aid of the Holy Spirit, sent from the Father and the Son, to lead us into all truth. God promised that He would never leave us as orphans. The Holy Spirit is the proof of His promise. All that remains is for us to entrust our lives to the Holy Spirit and follow wherever He leads.

12 “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. 13 But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming. 14 He will glorify me, because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you. 15 Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.”

my reflections
think: God promised that He would never leave us as orphans.

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God’s special verse/thought for me today________________

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T O D A Y ’ S BLESSING LIST

Thank You Lord for: ____________________________________

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READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Job 22-28

Have you met people who complain that we have many things in the Catholic Church which are “not in the Bible?” Purgatory, The Trinity, The Rosary, novenas, the veneration of Mary and the Saints....
      As if Jesus had foreseen this problem He told his disciples and us: “I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes He will lead you to the complete truth.” Ah, now we begin to see clearer. Jesus did not teach everything. He was a very good teacher who did not overwhelm His students with things they couldn’t grasp yet. And so Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to continue His teachings, to deepen his teachings, and lead his Church to the full truth.
      The Holy Spirit made it clear from the beginning that He would do this mainly through the apostles, the eyewitnesses, and their successors. In other words, the Church with all her faithful remains a great learner; revelation is progressive; there is always growth in our understanding of what Jesus has done and taught. All the things which, according to our non-Catholic friends, are “not in the Bible,” actually do not contradict the Bible but have their often hidden roots in the Bible. Since the Spirit “will not be speaking as from himself but will say only what He has learnt,” the ongoing teachings of the Spirit in the Church can never contradict the words of Jesus. Jesus and Spirit speak with one voice. Theologians, popes and bishops are the experts who see and explain these roots. If you open the new Catechism, you always find Bible verses as foundation to the teachings of the Church. Private revelations of seers or so-called visionaries might be acceptable, but only if they are investigated by the authorities and free of contradiction to the teachings of the Bible. Nearly all teachings and practices of the Church are questioned and challenged by the media or by politicians. When you read or hear, therefore, the Church being attacked for speaking out against contraception, abortion and euthanasia, ask first: What does the Bible say about Life? Not the media but the Bible is the last authority for our faith and many of our practices. And the guardian is the Magisterium, the Teaching Authority of the Church.
Fr. Rudy H.

REFLECTION QUESTION: Do I easily believe the media in matters of faith and Church, or do I try to find a solid answer in my Catechism or from a priest?

Lord, send me the Spirit of discernment so that I do not fall into the trap of believing everything I hear but believe what the Bible and the Church teach.

St. Adam, hermit and abbot, pray for us.