August 21, Monday

Memorial of St. Pius X, pope

REFLECTION
Mt. 19:16-22
Butler’s Lives of Saints contains the following comment about
Pope St. Pius X: “Thus there came to the chair of Peter a
man of obscure birth, of no outstanding intellectual
attainments, and with no experience of ecclesiastical
diplomacy, but one who, if ever man did, radiated
goodness: a man of God who knew the unhappiness of
the world and the hardships of life, and in the
greatness of his heart wanted to comfort everybody.”
(3, 475)
As a Pope and as a man, Pius X, showed three great qualities
which all Christians are called to imitate in their own way and in
their own circumstances:
kindness, strength, humility.
Source: Guillemette, N., The Cedars of Lebanon: Homily-Meditations on the Saints of the Year,
St. Pauls Publishing, 2009, pgs. 158-160
August 15, Tuesday
Solemnity of the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
REFLECTION
Lk 1: 39-56
The Feast of the Assumption recalls to us that one of our family,
our dear Mother, achieved salvation in a most glorious way. God
laid down his plans of love for Mary from the beginning of time;
throughout her life, God saw to it that she lacked nothing that
could help her to be faithful to him. On this Solemnity of the
Assumption, our Mother invites us:

• to joyfully submit to God’s plans of love for us,

• to grow always more conscious of our lowliness and of the
need we stand of God,
• to put our complete trust in God; in his inexhaustible mercy
and total faithfulness,
• to respond to God’s love for us through service to our
neighbor.
Source: The Word of God, Commentaries on the Sunday Readings, Year 3,
Fr. John Larrea, SDB
August 18

Friday
of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time
REFLECTION
Mt 19:3-12

Divorce is a major modern-day problem which has a long

history. Even Jesus was at a loss as to what to do about it.
The key is to understand the meaning of being two in one
and joined by God. Being two in one means a thinking in
union with a common purpose; a mental and spiritual more
than a physical bonding. Think of the marriages which have
taken place to strengthen a political alliance, to finalize a
business deal, or so often to “solve” a delicate situation such
as pregnancy.

The vows are precise and explicitly stated to give assurance

that those who make them are truly — physically, mentally,
and spiritually — two in one, and God is joining them
together.
 August 19, Saturday
Saturday, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin
Mary
REFLECTION
Mt 19:13-15
Christ welcomed the children.
The apostles were turning them away from Christ but he
told the children to come. Christ wanted to show that his
kingdom is for all men of any age. The apostles had been
allowing only adults to approach Christ but Christ himself
corrected them. Do I sometimes allow myself to accept some
people more readily than others? Do I attend only to the
people I like? How do I treat the people that I do not like, or
who do not like? Is everyone equal in my dealings with
others, the high and the low, the children and the elders?

God loves them all.

Therefore, I love them all.