St. Polycarp

Feastday: February 23

Imagine being able to sit at the feet of the apostles and hear their stories of life with Jesus from their own lips. Imagine walking with those who had walked with Jesus, seen him, and touched him. That was what Polycarp was able to do as a disciple of Saint John the Evangelist.

But being part of the second generation of Church leaders had challenges that the first generation could not teach about. What did you do when those eyewitnesses were gone? How do you carry on the correct teachings of Jesus? How do you answer new questions that never came up before?

With the apostles gone, heresies sprang up pretending to be true teaching, persecution was strong, and controversies arose over how to celebrate liturgy that Jesus never laid down rules for.

Polycarp, as a holy man and bishop of Smyrna, found there was only one answer -- to be true to the life of Jesus and imitate that life. Saint Ignatius of Antioch told Polycarp "your mind is grounded in God as on an immovable rock."

When faced with heresy, he showed the "candid face" that Ignatius admired and that imitated Jesus' response to the Pharisees. Marcion, the leader of the Marcionites who followed a dualistic heresy, confronted Polycarp and demanded respect by saying, "Recognize us, Polycarp." Polycarp responded, "I recognize you, yes, I recognize the son of Satan."

On the other hand when faced with Christian disagreements he was all forgiveness and respect. One of the controversies of the time came over the celebration of Easter. The East, where Polycarp was from, celebrated the Passover as the Passion of Christ followed by a Eucharist on the following day. The West celebrated Easter on the Sunday of the week following Passover. When Polycarp went to Rome to discuss the difference with Pope Anicetus, they could not agree on this issue. But they found no difference in their Christian beliefs. And Anicetus asked Polycarp to celebrate the Eucharist in his own papal chapel.

Polycarp faced persecution the way Christ did. His own church admired him for following the "gospel model" -- not chasing after martyrdom as some did, but avoiding it until it was God's will as Jesus did. They considered it "a sign of love to desire not to save oneself alone, but to save also all the Christian brothers and sisters."

One day, during a bloody martyrdom when Christians were attacked by wild animals in the arena, the crowd became so mad that they demanded more blood by crying, "Down with the atheists; let Polycarp be found." (They considered Christians "atheists" because they didn't believe in their pantheon of gods.) Since Polycarp was not only known as a leader but as someone holy "even before his grey hair appeared", this was a horrible demand.

Polycarp was calm but others persuaded him to leave the city and hide at a nearby farm. He spent his time in prayer for people he knew and for the Church. During his prayer he saw a vision of his pillow turned to fire and announced to his friends that the dream meant he would be burned alive.

As the search closed in, he moved to another farm, but the police discovered he was there by torturing two boys. He had a little warning since he was upstairs in the house but he decided to stay, saying, "God's will be done."

Then he went downstairs, talked to his captors and fed them a meal. All he asked of them was that they give him an hour to pray. He spent two hours praying for everyone he had every known and for the Church, "remembering all who had at any time come his way -- small folk and great folk, distinguished and undistinguished, and the whole Catholic Church throughout the world." Many of his captors started to wonder why they were arresting this holy, eighty-six-year-old bishop.

But that didn't stop them from taking him into the arena on the Sabbath. As he entered the arena, the crowd roared like the animals they cheered. Those around Polycarp heard a voice from heaven above the crowd, "Be brave, Polycarp, and act like a man."

The proconsul begged the eighty-six-year-old bishop to give in because of his age. "Say 'Away with the atheists'" the proconsul urged. Polycarp calmly turned to the face the crowd, looked straight at them, and said, "Away with the atheists." The proconsul continued to plead with him. When he asked Polycarp to swear by Caesar to save himself, Polycarp answered, "If you imagine that I will swear by Caesar, you do not know who I am. Let me tell you plainly, I am a Christian." Finally, when all else failed the proconsul reminded Polycarp that he would be thrown to the wild animals unless he changed his mind. Polycarp answered, "Change of mind from better to worse is not a change allowed to us."

Because of Polycarp's lack of fear, the proconsul told him he would be burned alive but Polycarp knew that the fire that burned for an hour was better than eternal fire.

When he was tied up to be burned, Polycarp prayed, "Lord God Almighty, Father of your beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, through whom we have received knowledge of you, God of angels and powers, of the whole creation and of the whole race of the righteous who live in your sight, I bless you, for having made me worthy of this day and hour, I bless you, because I may have a part, along with the martyrs, in the chalice of your Christ, to resurrection in eternal life, resurrection both of soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. May I be received today, as a rich and acceptable sacrifice, among those who are in you presence, as you have prepared and foretold and fulfilled, God who is faithful and true. For this and for all benefits I praise you, I bless you, I glorify you, through the eternal and heavenly High Priest, Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, through whom be to you with him and the Holy Spirit glory, now and for all the ages to come. Amen."

The fire was lit as Polycarp said Amen and then the eyewitnesses who reported said they saw a miracle. The fire burst up in an arch around Polycarp, the flames surrounding him like sails, and instead of being burned he seemed to glow like bread baking, or gold being melted in a furnace. When the captors saw he wasn't being burned, they stabbed him. The blood that flowed put the fire out.

The proconsul wouldn't let the Christians have the body because he was afraid they would worship Polycarp. The witnesses reported this with scorn for the lack of understanding of Christian faith: "They did not know that we can never abandon the innocent Christ who suffered on behalf of sinners for the salvation of those in this world." After the body was burned, they stole the bones in order to celebrate the memory of his martyrdom and prepare others for persecution. The date was about February 23, 156.

In His Footsteps:

When faced with challenges to your Christian life, try a version of Polycarp's prayer of martyrdom: "Lord God Almighty, Father of your beloved and blessed Son Jesus Christ, through whom we have received knowledge of you, God of angels and powers, of the whole creation and of the whole race of the righteous who live in your sight, I bless you, for having made me worthy of this day and hour, I bless you, because I may have a part, along with the martyrs, in the chalice of your Christ, to resurrection in eternal life, resurrection both of soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. For this and for all benefits I praise you, I bless you, I glorify you, through the eternal and heavenly High Priest, Jesus Christ, your beloved Son, through whom be to you with him and the Holy Spirit glory, now and for all the ages to come. Amen."

Prayer:

Saint Polycarp, sometimes Christ seems so far away from us. Centuries have passed since he and the apostles walk the earth. Help us to see that he is close to us always and that we can keep him near by imitating his life as you did. Amen

 

from Wikipedia

Polycarp (Greek: Πολύκαρπος, Polýkarpos; AD 69–155) was a 2nd-century Christian bishop of Smyrna.^[1] According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to touch him.^[2] Polycarp is regarded as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran churches.
It is recorded by Irenaeus, who heard him speak in his youth, and by Tertullian,^[3] that he had been a disciple of John the Apostle.^[4][5] Saint Jerome wrote that Polycarp was a disciple of John and that John had ordained him bishop of Smyrna.
The early tradition that expanded upon the Martyrdom to link Polycarp in competition and contrast with John the Apostle who, though many people had tried to kill him, was not martyred but died of old age after being exiled to the island of Patmos, is embodied in the Coptic language fragmentary papyri (the "Harris fragments") dating to the 3rd to 6th centuries.^[6] Frederick Weidmann, their editor, interprets the "Harris fragments" as Smyrnan hagiography addressing Smyrna-Ephesus church rivalries, which "develops the association of Polycarp and John to a degree unwitnessed, so far as we know, either before or since".^[7] The fragments echo the Martyrology, and diverge from it.
With Clement of Rome and Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp is regarded as one of three chief Apostolic Fathers. The sole surviving work attributed to his authorship is his Letter to the Philippians; it is first recorded by Irenaeus of Lyons.

Papa awahimiza viongozi wa kanisa kudumisha matumiani kwa watu wa Mungu

Jumapili 23 Februari, majira ya asubuhi , katika Kanisa Kuu la Mtakatifu Petro, Papa Francisko aliongoza maadhimisho ya Ibada ya Misa akiwa na Makardinali wapya na Makardinali wengine , kwa mujibu wa liturujia ya Jumapili ya V11 katika Kipindi cha kawaida. Ibada iliyo hudhuriwa na maefu ya waamini waliofika kuwapongeza Makardinali wapya toka sehemu mbalimbalimbali za dunia.

Katika homilia yake, Papa Francisko, aliitafakari sala ya utangulizi ya Ibada :“ Baba Mwenye Huruma , kwa msaada wako , daima tuwe makini kuisikia sauti ya Roho Mtakatifu" . 

Papa alisema, Sala hii ya ufunguzi wa Misa, inatukumbusha jambo msingi kwamba, ni wito wa kumsikiliza Roho Mtakatifu ambaye hulichagamsha na kuliongoza Kanisa. Kwa nguvu yake ya ubunifu na upya , Roho Mtakatifu daima hudumisha matumaini ya Watu wa Mungu, wanapo fanya hija katika njia ya historia yao , na kama Msaidizi , yeye daima huwaimarisha Wakristu katika kuwa mashaidi imara wa imani yao.

Papa alieleza na kusema wakati huo akiwa pamoja na Makardinali Wapya, ulikuwa ni wakati wa kusikiliza sauti ya Roho Mtakatifu anaye ongea nao kwa njia ya maandiko Matakatifu yaliyosomwa.

Papa baada ya kuyatafakari masomo , aliwakumbusha Makardinali kwamba, Bwana Yesu na Mama Kanisa, wanatoa mwaliko kwao, kushuhudia kwa bidii na hamasa zaidi katika nji hizi za utakatifu . Ni hasa katika zawadi hii kubwa ya majitolea binafsi, yanayotolewa kwa uhuru kamili, ambamo mna utakatifu wa kuwa Kardinali . Na kwamba kwa hadhi hii, wanapaswa kumpenda kila mmoja, hata wale wanaonekana kuwa maadui kwao, wanaolenga kuwafanyia mabaya , kuwapinga au kuwakaidi, wote ni kuwaslimia kwa tabasamu nzuri linalotokana ndani ya moyo wa msamaha,huruma na upendo wa kweli, hata kwa wale wanao fikiri hawastahili. Ni hatua ya kupinga kiburi kwa upole ; ni kuwa watu wa kusahau madharirisho na unyanyasaji wanaoweza kukumbana nao. Daima ni kuruhusu kuongozwa na Roho wa Kristo, aliye jitoa sadaka mwenyewe juu ya Msalaba, ili waweze kuwa njia kwa wengine pia , katika kuupata upendo wake, na kuwa miongozi mwa wafuasi wake.

Papa ameitaja hii kuwa ndiyo tabia ya Kardinali, ndiyo utendaji wa Kardinali. Kuitwa Kardinali katika Kanisa la Roma la Ulimwengu , si kuingia katika mahakama ya kifalme, lakini ni kujiunga katika huduma ya kina ya kusaidia wengine ili waepuke tabia mbovu na utendaji usiofaa unaochochewa na fitina, uvumi, magenge ya uovu upendeleo au kupendelewa.

Papa alieleza na kuomba lugha ya Makardinali na iwe lugha ya Injili, kusema ndiyo wakimaanisha kweli ndiyo , na hapana iwe na maana ya kweli ya hapana , na miendo na fikira zao iwe katika mtazamo wa Heri Takatifu kuwa njia yao utakatifu.
Papa alikamilisha hotuba yake kwa kuwasihi Makardinali wote kuwa wamoja katika Kristo na kati yao wenyewe kwa wenyewe. Na aliwaomba wasimsahau katika sala zao , na pia ushauri na wamsaada wao wa karibu katika kuliongoza Kansia la Ulimwengu. Vivyo hivyo alitoa mwaliko huo kwa Maaskofu, Mapadre , Mashemasi, watawa wake kwa wanaume, na walei, akisihi kuisihi pamoja na Roho Mtakatifu, na dekania ya Makardinali iweza daima kuwa na hamu zaidi na hamu ya upendo wa kichungaji uliojaa utakatifu, kwa ajili ya kutumikia Injili na kulisadia Kanisa kutoa miali ya mwanga wa Upendo wa Kristu katika dunia yetu.

Tamasha la Pasaka kuja kivingine

TAMASHA la Pasaka la mwaka huu litakalozinduliwa rasmi Aprili 20 jijini Dar es Salaam likibeba kaulimbiu ya ‘Tanzania Kwanza Haki Huinua Taifa’, litaendeshwa kwa staili mpya ya wadau wenyewe kuamua na kupanga. Hayo yalibainishwa jijini Dar es Salaam jana na Mkurugenzi Mtendaji wa Msama Promotions, waandaaji wa tamasha, Alex Msama, akisema wapenzi wa muziki huo ndio watawachagua waimbaji hao kwa kutuma ujumbe mfupi kupitia namba 15327 kwa kutumia mitandao yote ya simu.
“Tamasha la mwaka huu linakuja kwa staili mpya, ambapo wapenzi wa muziki wa injili watakuwa na fursa ya kuwachagua wanamuziki watakaopenda waje kutoa burudani na mikoa litakapofanyika tamasha hilo, tofauti na miaka mingine na wale wote watakaopendekezwa tutawaleta kutoa burudani,” alisema Msama.

Wapentekoste washikana uchawi

SIKU moja baada ya Ikulu kuliumbua Baraza la Maaskofu wa Kipentekoste Tanzania (PCT) kwamba hawakuwasilisha majina ya uteuzi kwa Rais Jakaya Kikwete, wameanza kushikana uchawi kumsaka aliyesababisha majina hayo kutofika Ikulu.
Hayo yamethibitishwa jana jijini Dar es Salaam na Mwenyekiti wa Ushirika wa Wachungaji wa Kanisa la Pentekoste Tanzania (PPFT), Askofu Pius Ikongo, alipokuwa akizungumza na Blogu hii.
Akizungumzia kuhusu tamko hilo la Ikulu, Askofu Ikongo alisema kuwa wanafanya uchunguzi kumnasa aliyesababisha kutofika majina hayo mezani kwa Rais Kikwete.

Daily Reading for Friday, February 21st, 2014

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Reading 1, James 2:14-24, 26

¹⁴ How does it help, my brothers, when someone who has never done a single good act claims to have faith? Will that faith bring salvation?
¹⁵ If one of the brothers or one of the sisters is in need of clothes and has not enough food to live on,
¹⁶ and one of you says to them, 'I wish you well; keep yourself warm and eat plenty,' without giving them these bare necessities of life, then what good is that?
¹⁷ In the same way faith, if good deeds do not go with it, is quite dead.
¹⁸ But someone may say: So you have faith and I have good deeds? Show me this faith of yours without deeds, then! It is by my deeds that I will show you my faith.
¹⁹ You believe in the one God -- that is creditable enough, but even the demons have the same belief, and they tremble with fear.
²⁰ Fool! Would you not like to know that faith without deeds is useless?
²¹ Was not Abraham our father justified by his deed, because he offered his son Isaac on the altar?
²² So you can see that his faith was working together with his deeds; his faith became perfect by what he did.
²³ In this way the scripture was fulfilled: Abraham put his faith in God, and this was considered as making him upright; and he received the name 'friend of God'.
²⁴ You see now that it is by deeds, and not only by believing, that someone is justified.
²⁶ As a body without a spirit is dead, so is faith without deeds.

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Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 112:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

¹ Alleluia! How blessed is anyone who fears Yahweh, who delights in his commandments!
² His descendants shall be powerful on earth, the race of the honest shall receive blessings:
³ Riches and wealth for his family; his uprightness stands firm for ever.
⁴ For the honest he shines as a lamp in the dark, generous, tender-hearted, and upright.
⁵ All goes well for one who lends generously, who is honest in all his dealing;
⁶ for all time to come he will not stumble, for all time to come the upright will be remembered.

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Gospel, Mark 8:34--9:1

³⁴ He called the people and his disciples to him and said, 'If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him renounce himself and take up his cross and follow me.
³⁵ Anyone who wants to save his life will lose it; but anyone who loses his life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.
³⁶ What gain, then, is it for anyone to win the whole world and forfeit his life?
³⁷ And indeed what can anyone offer in exchange for his life?
³⁸ For if anyone in this sinful and adulterous generation is ashamed of me and of my words, the Son of man will also be ashamed of him when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.'
¹ And he said to them, 'In truth I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power.'

St. Severian

Feastday: February 21

Died: 452

Bishop and martyr. The bishop of Scythopolis in Galilee. He attended the Council of Chalcedon (451) and took part in the complete triumph of the orthodox Christian cause against the heretics of the era. On his return home he was assassinated by a group of heretics at the command of Emperor Theodosius II.

Tafakari ya Neno la Mungu, Jumapili ya Saba ya Kipindi cha Mwaka A wa Kanisa

Mpendwa karibu  kipindi cha tafakari masomo Dominika, ninakuletea ujumbe wa Neno la Mungu nikisema kuweni watakatifu kama Baba yenu aliye mbinguni. Huo ndo wito wa kila awaye yote anayetaka kupata wokovu yaani uzima wa milele. Tuko tayari Dominika ya VII ya mwaka A wa Kanisa.
Katika Somo la kwanza kutoka Kitabu cha Mambo ya Walawi, tunapata kuanza kusikia mwaliko wa kuwa watakatifu tukifuata mfano thabiti na wa uhakika yaani Mungu mwenyewe. Mungu anawasiliana na taifa lake kwa njia ya Musa akitaka wawe watakatifu kama yeye alivyo. Anasonga mbele akieleza kilichomo ndani ya safari ya utakatifu: kuachana na chuki, kukemea maovu yanayojiri katika jumuiya na majirani zetu na kuachana na kinyongo na kisirani katika maisha yako. Ili kutekeleza haya lazima kujitenga na dunia, kama iliyo maana ya utakatifu katika Agano la Kale (mkumbuke Mtakatifu Antonio Abate, mwanzilishi wa Umonaki).

Kwa hakika utakatifu ulikuwa na maana ya kuwekwa pembeni kwa ajili ya Mungu. Patakatifu pa patakatifu palimaanisha Mungu mwenyewe. Ni katika maana ileile, wakristu lazima wajitenga kiroho na chachu ya dunia yaani kuachana na maisha ya dhambi. Ndiyo kusema kukazia amri ya mapendo kwa jirani na si kujitenga na wapagani kama Waisraeli walivyokuwa wakifikiri. Ni kumpenda Mungu tukiambatana na wenye shida mbalimbali tukielekea wote mbinguni.

Mtume Paulo anapowaandikia Wakorinto anakazia ule utakatifu tuliokabidhiwa na Mungu. Anasema sisi ni hekalu la Roho Mtakatifu. Mpendwa, nikishasikia neno hilo mara moja mwaliko ni kutunza utakatifu ili niendelee kubaki Hekalu safi kwa ajili ya kumwabudia Mungu. Katika Ukorinto kulikuwa na ugomvi na ulitokana na tishio la kutopendana na hapa ndipo Mtume Paulo anakuja na fundisho kali akikemea uozo huo unaojitokeza katika sura ya utengano.

Katika Injili, Mwinjili Matayo, anaweka mbele yetu mausia ya Bwana kuhusu sheria ya kale. Bwana anataka mabadiliko ya uelewa wa sheria, ya kwamba ni kwa ajili ya kujenga umoja kwa watu na si kuangamiza. Anataka sheria izame katika utu zaidi kuliko mambo mengine na ilinde maisha, iliyo zawadi ya Mungu. Mpendwa mwanatafakari, Hata hivyo yatupasa kuelewa nini maana ya sheria za zamani, mfano Jicho kwa jicho au jino kwa jino!! Mara kadhaa tunatafsiri jambo hili kadiri ya maneno yalivyo kwa nje! Na hivi huleta maana potofu! Kwa hakika mwanzo wa sheria hii ulikuwa mzuri!

Maana yake nini! Ni kwamba kabla ya sheria hii mtu alipokuwa akitenda kosa fulani alikuwa analazimika kulipa fidia si kwa makosa yake tu bali hata kwa makosa mengine yasiyo yake. Na hivi ikawa ni mateso makubwa kwa watu, basi ikatungwa sheria ya jicho kwa jicho, yaani mtu alipie fidia ya makosa yake tu! Kumbe kukazaliwa namna mpya na ya haki katika kutawala na kuongoza haki katika Jumuiya. Ndiyo kusema hakukuwa na matumizi ya moja kwa moja yaani ya kuondoana macho au meno! Ndiyo kusema walitaka kufundisha ule uwiano kati ya kosa na adhabu .

Mpendwa mwanatafakari, Bwana anasema imeandikwa jicho kwa jicho kama njia ya kutenda, lakini mimi nasema epukeni magomvi, majibizano katika maisha yenu. Ni heri kuvumilia na kuachana na mwendelezo wa mapigano. Hataki kuondoa haki ila anataka kuwepo na upole na unyenyekevu wa moyo katika maisha ya watu wakitafuta haki, ili mbele ya taabu tupate kutunza umoja na utulivu katika jumuiya.

Bwana anafundisha kwa hakika, njia ya pekee ya kuondoa mnyololo wa fitina ni msamaha. Kwa maana mtu akikupiga na ukamsamehe mara moja hakuna nyongeza ya ukubwa wa mapigano, lakini kama ukijibu kwa mapigano basi nyongeza mara mbili ya shida katika jumuiya. Anazidi kukazia upendo hata kwa adui, na hii ndiyo namna ya kwenda kinyume na mantiki ya zamani kuhusu upendo.

Mpendwa, mantiki ya zamani na ya sasa kuhusu upendo ni ipi? Kwa hakika hapo zamani ilikuwa mpende akupendaye kinyume na mantiki ya Kristu katika Agano Jipya isemayo, mpende hata adui yako. Bwana haondoi ile ya kwanza bali anaiongezea nguvu na kuikamilisha. Mpendwa, yashike haya yote yaliyousiwa na Bwana na kuyaishi na hivi utakuwa mtakatifu kama Baba yetu aliye mbinguni.

Nikutakie furaha na matumaini katika kuishi sheria mpya, sheria ya Mungu itujengeayo uhuru na mshikamano na Kristo. Tumsifu Yesu Kristo.

Tafakari hii imeletwa kwako na Padre Richard Tiganya C.PP.S.

Ili kuimjua Yesu ni lazima kumfuata- Papa Francis

(Vatican) Kumjua Kristu ni kutembea nae katika utendaji wote wa kila siku na si kumfahamu kinadharia au kwa kusoma tu maandishi yake. Huo ulikuwa ni ujumbe wa Papa Francisko wakati wa Ibada ya Misa Alhamisi asubuhi katika Kanisa dogo la Mtakatifu Marta. Alieleza kwamba , kila siku Kristu hutuuliza "Yeye ni nani kwetu" , na inawezekana tu kutoa jibu kwa kuishi nae kama iilivyokuwa kwa wanafunzi.

Papa amesema Ukristu ni maisha ya mwanafunzi , kuliko maisha ya utafiti. Mkristu kuujua ukweli wa Yesu ni nani kwake, ni kuingia katika hija na kufuata nyayo za Mwalimu wa ushuhuda wazi , na uvumilivu katika yote, usaliti , udhoofu wa mwili na kupita katika mashinikizo mapya yenye mikingamo mikali. Papa Francisko alieleza na kutoa mfano wa Petro , ambaye katika Injili ya siku ilimwonyesha yote kwa wakati mmoja, kama shahidi shupavu , anayejibu maswali ya Yesu kwa Mitume , “Na ninyi je, mnasema mimi ni kwenu”? akijibu "Wewe ni Kristo" , na mara baadaye akawa kinyume chake, akamkana kama adui , na mara akipatwa na aibu , akaona anahitaji kukutana tena na Yesu, ambaye alikuwa tu ametangaz a mateso na kifo na ufufuko wake. Papa aliasa, mara nyingi ,Yesu anarudi kwetu na kutuuliza , “Mimi ni nani kwako” na tunampa jibu kama hilo la Petro, , Jibu tulilojifunza wakati wa Kateksimu , lakini jibu hilo halitoshi.

Papa aliendelea kufafanua kwamba, inaonekana kutoa jibu katika swali hilo tunaliliosikia ndani ya mioyo yetu , Yesu ni Nani kwatu, kwa yale ambayo tumeyasikia na kujifunza haitoshi. Wala kusoma na kuelewa peke yake haitoshi . Kumjua Yesu kweli , ni kutembea na Yesu katika njia yake, kama Mtume Petro alivyofanya ,baada ya kumkana, aliuona ukweli wa Yesu ni nani na kubadili mwenendeno wake . Petro alikwenda mbele na Yesu,alizona ishara alizofanya, aliona nguvu za Yesu, na kumkiri kuw andiye Kristu.

Petro , Papa Francisko aliendelea, aliomba msamaha kwa Yesu - na bado, baada ya ufufuo, aliulizwa na Yesu mara tatu katika mwambao wa ziwa Tiberia : " Wanipenda ?". Pengine, Papa alisema ,Yesu alitaka kuthibitisha upendo kamili wa Petro kwa Bwana wake , Petro alitokwa namachozi na kuona ea aibu wakati alipomkana mara tatu wakati wa mateso yake.

Papa anasema , ni kukutana kila siku na Bwana, kila siku ni kumshudia ushindi wetu na udhaifu wetu." Lakini , safari hii hatuwezi kuifanya wenyewe, tunamhitaji Roho Mtaktifu , aingilie kati , kama jambo muhimu.


Papa amehimiza, kumjua Yesu ni zawadi itokayo kwa Baba , ni Yeye anaye tufanikisha kumjua Yesu. Ni kazi ya Roho Mtakatifu, anaye fanya kazi hii kubwa. Hizi si kama juhudi za kibiashara au mashirikisho ya wafanyakazi , lakini ni Roho Mtakatifu, Mfanyakazi hodari ambaye daima huifanya kazi yake . Huifanya kazi hii ya kueleza fumbo la Yesu na kutupatia sisi maana ya Yesu ni nani kwetu. Papa aliomba tuyaweke mawazo yetu wakati ule wa Yesu akiwauliza mitume wake , Petro , Mitume ,tulisikie swali hilo a ndani ya mioyo yetu, “ Mimi ni nani kwako”? Na kama wafuasi wake na tumwomba Baba atujalie sisi sote, kumjua Kristo katika Roho Mtakatifu, ambaye atatupa jibu , la siri huu kuu , Yesu ni nai kwetu. .

Ulevi wa kupindukia ni chanzo cha majanga mengi duniani!

Zaidi ya watu millioni mbili na nusu hufariki dunia kila mwaka kutokana na ulevi wa kupindukia. Waathirika wakubwa wa janga hili la ulevi ni vijana kuanzia miaka kumi na mitano, hali ambayo inahatarisha usalama na ustawi wa maisha ya vijana hawa kwa siku za usoni kiasi kwamba, wanaweza kukosa dira na mwelekeo wa maisha.
Inasikitisha kuona kwamba, vijana wenye umri mdogo kabisa wanaathirika kwa unywaji wa pombe kupindukia. Ulevi ni kati ya mambo ambayo yanaendelea kuchangia magonjwa na vifo vya ghafla. Hii ndiyo maana wataalam wa masuala ya afya wanasema kwamba, ulevi wa kupindukia ni hatari kwa maisha ya binadamu, kwani pombe si maji wala “juice”.
Kutokana na changamoto hizi, Taasisi ya Kipapa ya Sayansi Jamii, hivi karibuni iliendesha warsha ya siku moja iliyoaunganisha wanasayansi na viongozi wa Kanisa ili kufanya tafakari ya kina kuhusu madhara ya ulevi wa kupindukia katika maisha ya vijana, jambo ambalo linapaswa kuwekewa mikakati maalum ya kichungaji, ili kuwasaidia vijana kuheshimu zawadi ya maisha yao binafsi na yale ya jirani zao.
Ulevi wa kupindukia ni tatizo linalopaswa kuvaliwa njuga kwa ajili ya ustawi na mafao ya mtu binafsi na Jumuiya kwa ujumla. Hii ndiyo kauli mbiu iliyofanyiwa kazi na wadau mbali mbali kutoka ndani na nje ya Vatican. Katika tafakari yake, Kardinali Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, Rais wa Shirikisho la Mashirika ya Misaada ya Kanisa Katoliki Kimataifa, Caritas Internationalis, amekazia umuhimu wa kupambana na ulevi wa kupindukia kwa kujikita katika kanuni maadili na utu wema.
Ulevi ni jambo linaloathiri afya ya mtu, kiasi hata cha kumong’onyoa tunu msingi za kimaadili na utu wema, Ulevi umekuwa pia ni chanzo cha ajali nyingi barabarani pamoja na uharibifu mkubwa wa mali na miundo mbinu inayogharimu kiasi kikubwa cha fedha ya walipa kodi.
Takwimu zinaonesha kwamba, Bara la Ulaya linaongozwa kwa ulevi wa kupindukia. Inakadiriwa kwamba, kuna zaidi ya watu millioni kumi na tano wanaosumbuliwa na ugonjwa wa ulevi wa kupindukia. Katika kipindi cha miaka kumi iliyopita, hali ya ulevi Barani Ulaya hakuongezeka sana, pengine hii inatokana na kampeni zilizoendeshwa na wadau mbali mbali dhidi ya ulevi wa kupindukia. Kiasi cha Euro billioni 156 zinatumika kila mwaka kwa ajili ya kugharimia hasara zinazojitokeza kutokana na ulevi wa kupindukia.
Huduma kwa watu wanaosumbuliwa na ugonjwa waulevi wa kupindukia bado ni kidogo sana, kwani baadhi ya watu wanadhani huu si ugonjwa wa kupatiwa tiba bali ni starehe. Inawezekana kabisa kwa mlevi kuachana na tabia hii akizingatia masharti pamoja na kuendelea kupokea ushauri nasaha. Inasikitisha kuona kwamba, vileo ni kati ya bidhaa zinazoyaingizia mataifa mengi fedha ya kodi ya mapato. Lakini umefika wakati wa kuangalia pia afya na usalama wa maisha ya raia kwa kuweka mikakati ya kudhibiti tabia ya ulevi wa kupindukia.

Vizuizi vya ndoa!

Mpendwa mfuatiliaji wa blogu hii endelea kusoma  tuhekimishane kuhusu yale yahusuyo maisha ya ndoa na familia. Kwa vipindi kama hivi, Kanisa linaendelea kutekeleza wajibu wake wa kuwafundisha, kuwaombea na kuwasaidia wote walioitikia wito wa ndoa ili waweze kutekeleza vema malengo ya wito huo.

Katika kipindi hiki, tushirikishane juu ya vizuizi vya ndoa kadiri ya sheria ya Kanisa. Mpendwa mfuatiliaji, ili somo letu lisiwe zito masikioni, tutaichambua mada hii kwa mtazamo wa kichungaji zaidi. Tunaiweka kwa ufupi sana na kwa mifano mwepesi. Undani wake mwaweza kupata katika semina za ndoa. Kwa yale ambayo hayataweza kufafanulika vizuri hadharani hapa, tunawaalikeni nyote waendeeni Maparoko na Mapadre wetu, waulizeni nao watawahekimisha.

Mpendwa, kwa wale wenye kufuatilia mada hii katika Ngombo la Sheria za Kanisa, tafakari hii ina uhalali kwa nguvu sheria ya Kanisa, Kanuni namba 1083 – 1094. Hapo tunakuta vizuizi KUMI NA VIWILI. Kuna vizuizi ambavyo ni vya hadhara na vingine sio vya hadhara. Vipo vya kijamii na vingine ni vya kiroho. Kwaye anayetaka kuingia katika wito huo wa ndoa, kisha jua kwamba ana kizuizi, basi kitatuliwe kwa taratibu zinazokubalika.

Tunaposikia tangazo “UNGA NA MAJI WANATAKA KUFUNGA NDOA, TANGAZO LA KWANZA. Wanaojua kizuizi chochote wapashe habari katika ofisi ya Paroko, haya yafuatayo ndiyo ya kupeleka. Usipeleke habari isiyohusika, eti aah binti yule anakiburi huwa hanisalimii. Au aah yule bwana anajiona sana, mimi naona hata ndoa hiyo asifunge!! Wee, hivyo sio kizuizi kisheria. VIZUIZI VYENYEWE NI HIVI HAPA:-

Kizuizi cha kwanza ni UMRI. Sheria Kan, namb. 1083 inaelekeza kwamba, mwanaume anaweza kuoa akiwa na umri wa miaka 16, na binti anaweza kuolewa akiwa na umri wa miaka 14. Kanisa linaona umri huo kwa tamaduni nyingi, mtu anaweza kuchukua majukumu ya ndoa na kuhimili mikikimikiki ya ndoa na familia. Endapo wanandoa wana umri mdogo zaidi, kizuizi kipelekwe kwa Paroko. Hapa Kanisa limetamka tu umri wa chini. Kuhusu umri wa juu halijasema kitu na hicho sio kizuizi (Ila hali halisi itazamwe). Mtu asiseme, aah mbona mchumba mwenyewe amemzidi umri, au mbona wamepishana sana umri hawezi kumuoa. Hapana, wasiwe chini ya 16 na 14. Huko kwingine sio kizuizi.

Kizuizi cha pili ni UHANITHI. Sheria Kan, namb. 1084 inazingatia lengo la ndoa ‘kuzaa watoto’. Endapo mmoja hana uwezo wa tendo la ndoa (aweza kuwa mke au mume), huyo anazuiwa kwa sheria ya asili. Hiki ni kizuizi cha ndani, hakionekani usoni. Ni juu ya mtu binafsi kujijua.

Tutofautishe hapa kati ya kukosa uwezo wa kushiriki tendo la ndoa na kukosa uwezo wa kuzaa (utasa na ugumba). Utasa na ugumba, havizuii wala kutengua ndoa. Siku zetu hizi mang’amuzi ya kichungaji yanashuhudia kukithiri kwa tatizo la uhanithi kwa vijana wengi wa kike na wa kiume. Siku nyingine tutachambua sababu ya mkasa huu. Ukitambua kama fulani ana shida hii, basi hicho ni kizuizi, asiingie kwenye ndoa atatesa mwenzake. Lakini nyakati zetu sayansi ya tiba imekuwa sana ni vema watu kushughulikia afya zao mapema kama kuna matatizo.

Kizuizi cha tatu ni NDOA-AWALI. Sheria Kan, namb. 1085 inakataza mtu kuoa au kuolewa wakati alikwisha kufunga ndoa na ndoa ya kwanza bado ipo hai. Sasa, huweza kutokea mazingira kwamba wanandoa wametengana kwa taratibu za talaka za kiserikali. Kanisa bado linatambua na kuheshimu ile sakramenti; hivyo haliruhusu ndoa nyingine!

Changamoto ya nyakati zetu hizi, ambapo wadanganyifu ni wengi, mtu anafunga ndoa kona mmoja ya nchi, anamtoroka mwezi wake, anakwenda kona nyingine ya dunia anaoa au kuolewa huko wakati alikotoka ameacha mke au mume na watoto. Hilo agano la pili ni batili. Ukisikia ndoa inatangazwa ya mtu ambaye unajua aliwahi kuoa au kuolewa na mwenziwe yupo, kimbia kaseme, ni kizuizi hicho.

Kizuizi cha nne ni UTOFAUTI WA IMANI. Sheria Kan, namb. 1086, inaelekeza kwamba, iwapo mmoja ni Mwamini Mbatizwa Mkatoliki na mwingine sio, utofauti huo ni vema utatuliwe kwanza kadiri ya taratibu zetu. (Utofauti unaoelezwa hapa ni ule kati ya Mkatoliki na Mkristo asiye mkatoliki, au Mkatoliki na mwamimi wa dini nyinginezo). Taratibu msingi zifuatwe ili kweli iwe Sakramenti. Baba Paroko anajua cha kufanya.

Hadi hapa ndugu mzikilizaji wa Radio Vatican, tunaahirisha makala yetu kwa leo, Juma lijalo tutaendelea kuhekimishana kuhusu vizuizi vya ndoa ya Kikristo kwa kuangalia kuhusu maisha ya Daraja Takatifu, Utawa pamoja mtu kutoroshwa. 
Hadi wakati mwingine tena ni mimi Padre Pambo Martin Mkorwe, OSB.

Daily Reading for Thursday, February 20th, 2014

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Reading 1, James 2:1-9

¹ My brothers, do not let class distinction enter into your faith in Jesus Christ, our glorified Lord.
² Now suppose a man comes into your synagogue, well-dressed and with a gold ring on, and at the same time a poor man comes in, in shabby clothes,
³ and you take notice of the well-dressed man, and say, 'Come this way to the best seats'; then you tell the poor man, 'Stand over there' or 'You can sit on the floor by my foot-rest.'
⁴ In making this distinction among yourselves have you not used a corrupt standard?
⁵ Listen, my dear brothers: it was those who were poor according to the world that God chose, to be rich in faith and to be the heirs to the kingdom which he promised to those who love him.
⁶ You, on the other hand, have dishonoured the poor. Is it not the rich who lord it over you?
⁷ Are not they the ones who drag you into court, who insult the honourable name which has been pronounced over you?
⁸ Well, the right thing to do is to keep the supreme Law of scripture: you will love your neighbour as yourself;
⁹ but as soon as you make class distinctions, you are committing sin and under condemnation for breaking the Law.

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Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7

² I will praise Yahweh from my heart; let the humble hear and rejoice.
³ Proclaim with me the greatness of Yahweh, let us acclaim his name together.
⁴ I seek Yahweh and he answers me, frees me from all my fears.
⁵ Fix your gaze on Yahweh and your face will grow bright, you will never hang your head in shame.
⁶ A pauper calls out and Yahweh hears, saves him from all his troubles.
⁷ The angel of Yahweh encamps around those who fear him, and rescues them.

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Gospel, Mark 8:27-33

²⁷ Jesus and his disciples left for the villages round Caesarea Philippi. On the way he put this question to his disciples, 'Who do people say I am?'
²⁸ And they told him, 'John the Baptist, others Elijah, others again, one of the prophets.'
²⁹ 'But you,' he asked them, 'who do you say I am?' Peter spoke up and said to him, 'You are the Christ.'
³⁰ And he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone about him.
³¹ Then he began to teach them that the Son of man was destined to suffer grievously, and to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be put to death, and after three days to rise again;
³² and he said all this quite openly. Then, taking him aside, Peter tried to rebuke him.
³³ But, turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said to him, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are thinking not as God thinks, but as human beings do.'

St. Wulfric

Feastday: February 20
1080 - 1154

Wulfric (d. 1154) + hermit and miracle worker. Born at Compton Martin, near Bristol, England, he became a priest and was excessively materialistic and worldly. After meeting with a beggar, he underwent a personal conversion and became a hermit at Haselbury; Somerset, England. For his remaining years, he devoted himself to rigorous austerities and was known for his miracles and prophecies. While he was never formally canonized, Wulfric was a very popular saint during the Middle Ages, and his tomb was visited by many pilgrims. Feast day: February 20.

 

from Wikipedia

Saint Wulfric, (1080 (?) at Compton Martin – 20 February 1154 at Haselbury Plucknett), was an anchorite and miracle worker frequently visited by King Stephen. His feast day is 20 February.

Life[edit]

Wulfric was born at Compton Martin, 10 miles south of Bristol. After becoming a priest, he at first exercised his ministry at Deverill, near Warminster. At this stage, apparently, he was much addicted to hunting, with both hawks and hounds. A chance conversation with a beggar, however, converted him to more godly pursuits, and moved back to Compton Martin as parish priest.^[1]
In the year 1125 Wulfric came to St. Michael and All Angels Church in Haselbury Plucknett, Somerset. Wulfric wished to spend the rest of his life as an Anchorite, withdrawn from the world, living in a cell adjacent to the church. This cell stood on the cold northern side of the chancel where the vestry is now. Although he apparently failed to obtain episcopal permission for this move, he was supported by the Cluniac monks at Montacute.^[1] Sir William FitzWalter had a great respect for his saintly neighbor; he sent provisions to him and visited him from time to time. Wulfric numbered among his intimate friends Osbern, the village priest, William, a lay-brother of Forde Abbey; and Brichtric, who seems to have joined him as a disciple or attendant.^[2]
Soon people came to him for guidance and blessing. During the reigns of kings Henry I and Stephen, Wulfric exercised a powerful influence, not only in his own neighborhood, but also at court.^[2] Henry I was informed, correctly, that he would shortly die, while King Stephen was chastised for the evils of his government.^[1] Wulfric is said to have received the gifts of prophecy and healing and was involved in many miraculous happenings. He became known as a healer of body, mind and spirit for all those who sought him out.
According to Abbot John of Forde Abbey, Wulfric lived alone in these simple quarters for twenty-nine years, devoting much of his time to reading the Bible and praying. In keeping with the ideals of medieval spirituality, he adopted stern ascetic practices: he deprived himself of sleep, ate a frugal meatless diet, spent hours reciting the psalms sitting in a bath of cold water, and wore a hair shirt and heavy chain-­‐mail tunic.^[3]
One of the most influential anchorite priests of medieval England, he died in his cell on the 20th February 1154.^[3] At his death, a scuffle occurred in and around St. Michael's between black-­robed Norman Cluniac monks from Montacute and folk from Haselbury and Crewkerne who had been summoned by Osbern, the Haselbury Priest. The monks maintained that providing food for the anchorite, which they had done for many years, gave them a claim to the holy man's mortal remains. But the locals forced them to withdraw and Wulfric was buried in his cell by the Bishop of Bath who had visited him at his death-bed.^[2] For security reasons, Osbern moved Wulfric's remains twice, until they came to rest somewhere near the west end of the church, "...in a place known only to himself and God".^[3]

Legacy[edit]

In July 2009 The Wulfric Festival was held at the parish churches of St Michael and All Angels at Haselbury and St Martin's at North Perrott, brings three days of classical, folk, jazz and West Gallery music, all in aid of the restoration of the two churches.^[4]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^{a b c} "The hermit who informed an English king that he would soon die", Catholic Herald, 21 February 2013
2. ^ ^{a b c} Clay, Rotha Mary. Hermits and Anchorites of England, p.74, Methuen & Co., Ltd., London, 1914
3. ^ ^{a b c} "Wulfric at St. Michael's, 1125-­1154", St. Michael and All Angels Church, Haselbury Pluckett, Somerset
4. ^ "Musical Notes", This is Dorset, 10 July 2009

Kila tunapokiri dhambi;Mungu hutukumbatia -Papa

Baba Mtakatifu mapema Jumatano, ametoa Katekesi kwa mahujaji na wageni waliokuwa wamekusanyika katika uwanja wa Kanisa Kuu la Mtakatifu Petro, kama ilivyokuwa kawaida ya siku hii. Katika maelezo yake , ameangalisha katika Sakramenti ya Ubatizo ambao ni mwanzo wa mtu kuwa Mkristu, akisema, kwa njia ya Sakramenti za kwanza za Ukristu , ubatizo , Ekaristi na Kipaimara , mtu anapata maisha mapya katika Kristo. Na baada ya hapo Wakristu wanapaswa kutambua kwamba, sasa ndiyo wanaianza safari ya maisha ya kweli ambayo si lele mama "(2 Kor 4:07 ), lakini ni maisha yaliyojaa majaribu, mateso, na hata mauti, kwa sababu ya dhambi ya asili , na bila kuwa waangalifu maisha haya mapya hata wanaweza kuyapoteza.

Kwa sababu hii Papa aamefafanua, Bwana Yesu alitaka Kanisa liwe pia pia na Sakramenti nyingine sakramenti ya msamaha wa dhambi (upatanisho) au kitubio na mpako wa mafuta ya wagonjwa , ambavyo vinaweza kuwa chini ya jina la moja " sakramenti za uponyaji" .
Papa Francisko ameendelea kufundisha kwamba, Sakramenti ya Upatanisho ni sakramenti ya uponyaji. Na wakati muumini anapokwenda kukiri dhambi zake mbele ya kuhani, anakwenda kuomba kuponywa roho , kuponya moyo wake kwa kila jambo lililoichafua roho. Papa ameeleza kwa kurejea mfano unao onyesha dhamana bora ya kina katika msamaha na uponyaji wa mtu aliyepooza, ambapo Yesu alifanya yote mawili kwa wakati mmoja , kama daktari wa mwili na kiroho. (cf. Mk 2:1-12 / / Mt 9,1-8 , Lk 5.17-26 ).

Papa aliendelea kuizungumzia Sakramenti yaKitubio na Upatanisho ambayo pia huitwa sakramenti ya maungamo,akisema tunaweza kuiunganisha moja kwa moja na fumbo la Pasaka . Kwa kweli, usiku huo wa Pasaka, Bwana alijitokeza kwa wanafunzi katika chumba ghorofani kilicho kuwa kimefungwa, na , baada ya salamu "Amani iwe nanyi" , akawavuvia na kuwaambia , " Pokeeni Roho Mtakatifu. Kwa wale ambao mtawasamehe dhambi zao nao watasamehewa "(Yn 20:21-23) .
Papa amesema, kifungu hiki , kinaonyesha zaidi utendaji wa ndani wa Sakramenti. Awali ya yote, ni ukweli kwamba, msamaha wa dhambi zetu si jambo tunaloweza sisi kujipa wenyewe, katika maana ya kujiondolea dhambi mwenyewe , mimi nimejisamehe dhambi zangu, lakini msamaha unadai kutolewa na mtu mwingine, na kuomba msamaha ni kuomba na kumkiri Yesu kuw andiye mwenye kuondoa dhambi na si mtu mwingine. Na msahama si matokeo ya juhudi zetu , lakini ni zawadi, ni zawadi ya Roho Mtakatifu , ambaye anatujaza na kututakasa kwa huruma na neema inayotoka kwa Yesu Kristu Msulubiwa na Mfufuka, alieyufunua moyo wake wote wazi kwa ajili ya kusamehe wadhambi bila ukomo.
Papa amekubusha kwamba, kujipatanisha na Baba wa Mbinguni, na Bwana Yesu Kristo na ndugu zetu, tunakuwa na amani ya kweli. Na hili huweza kusikika ndani ya mioyo ya wote wale wanaoiendelea altare ya maungamo , wakiwa wamejawa na moyo mzito na woga lakini mara wanaposiki Yesu amewasamehe dhambi zao, mara hujisikia wepesi moyoni na kuwa na amani zaidi.
Papa ameendelea kufundisha kwamba , kuiadhimisha Sakramenti ya Upatanisho maana yake ni kuikumbatia kwa nguvu , kukumbatia bila ukomo huruma ya Baba. , kama ilivyokuwa kwa mfano wa Mwana Mpotevu aliyetapanya sehemu ya urithi na baada ya kuishiwa, dhiki kubwa ilimfanya arudi nyumbani kwa aibu , si kama mtoto lakini kama mtumishi . Moyoni mwake alijisikia vibaya sana na alijiona kuw na hatia moyoni mwake na kushikwa na aibu kubwa . Lakini kwa mshangao wakati yeye akianza kuzungumza na kuomba msamaha kwa Baba yake, alimkubatia na kumbusu kwa huruma na kumkaribisha nyumbani, si kama mtumishi lakini kama mtoto.
Papa anasema maajabu haya. Na ndivyo Mungu anavyotutendea sisi tunapojitenga nae na kutapanya baraka alizotujalia , tukijichafua kwa dhambi, mara tunapomrudia yeye hutukumbatia na kutubariki tena, kama wana wake. Tunachotakiwa kila mara ni kurejea katika madhabahu ya kitubio na upatanisho kusema baba nimekosa , naye kwa wingi wa huruma atatupokea na kutukumbatia na kutupatia tena baraka zake. Baada ya salaam zake Papa alisalimia katika lugha mbalimbali. Wiki hii makundi makubwa ya mahujaji na wageni walitoka Uingereza , Norway, Nigeria , Japan na Marekani.

Catholic Facts and General Knowledge

Catholic Belief

1. To gain the happiness of heaven we must know, love, and serve God in this world. Man must know, love and serve God in a supernatural manner in order to gain happiness of heaven. Man is raised to the supernatural order only by grace, a free gift of God.
2. We learn to know, love, and serve God from Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who teaches us through the Catholic Church.
3. In order to be saved, all persons who have attained the use of reason must believe explicitly that God exist and that he rewards the good and punishes the wicked; in practice they must also believe in the mysteries of the Blessed Trinity and the Incarnation.
4. By the Blessed Trinity we mean one and the same God in three divine persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
5. By the Incarnation is meant that the Son of God, retaining His divine nature, took to Himself a human nature, that is, a body and soul like ours.
6. The Church is the congregation of all baptized persons united in the same true faith, the same sacrifice, and the same sacraments, under the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff and the bishops in communion with him.
7. We find the chief truths taught by Jesus Christ through the Catholic Church in the Apostles' Creed.

The Commandments

Besides believing what God has revealed, we must keep His law.

The Two Great Commandments

that contain the whole law of God are:

You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, and with your whole soul, and with your whole mind, and with your whole strength; you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

To love God, our neighbor, and ourselves, we must keep the commandments of God and of the Church, and perform the spiritual and corporal works of mercy.

The Ten Commandments of God

1. I am the Lord your God; you shall not have strange gods before me.
2. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
3. Remember to keep holy the Lord's day
4. Honor your father and your mother.
5. You shall not kill.
6. You shall not commit adultery.
7. You shall not steal.
8. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
9. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
10. You shall not covet you neighbor's goods.

The Chief Commandments or Laws, of the Church

1. To assist at Mass on all Sundays and holy days of obligation.
2. To fast and abstain on the days appointed.
3. To confess our sins at least once a year.
4. To receive Holy Communion during the Easter time.
5. To contribute to the support of the Church.
6. To observe the laws of the Church concerning marriage.

Haiti’s bishops rejoice over country’s first Cardinal-to-be

(Vatican Radio) Haiti’s bishops are giving thanks for the creation of their first Cardinal in the upcoming Consistory this Saturday February 22^nd. Pope Francis will give the new red hat to the President of the Haitian Bishops’ Conference, Bishop Chibly Langlois, of the Diocese of Les Cayes. The bishops also urged Haiti's political and civil leaders to support "the process of national dialogue" to further the "higher interests of the nation and the good of the Haitian people."

Upon hearing the news of the nomination of their first Cardinal, the Haitian Bishops’ Conference at the end of last month issued a pastoral message to all “men and women of good will.” We publish below the unofficial translation of that message:

Sisters and Brothers Beloved !
” Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “(2 Thessalonians 1: 2)
1 . In this Year of grace 2014 we commemorate the 210th Anniversary of the Independence of Haiti , we are at a crucial moment in our history , both ecclesiastical and at the social and political level . The ecclesial level , it is time for thanksgiving and joy with the creation , on February 22 next by Pope Francis, the first Haitian Cardinal, His Eminence Cardinal Chibly LANGLOIS , Bishop of the Diocese of Les Cayes and President of the CEH . It is a mark of great confidence that honors all the Haitian people.

2 . At the Social and political level , it is a time of hope for a national dialogue. In a pastoral note dated September 27, 2013 , the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Haiti had offered his mediation to help political and state actors to interact together to find a concerted and consensual solution to the crisis in our nation . This dialogue is ongoing.

3 . We invite all sectors of national life to continue to support this process by bringing in our thoughts , our communications and especially in prayer, so that all actors involved in the national dialogue will be enlightened and guided by the inspiration and Wisdom of the Lord Our God to work selflessly , tirelessly , so the higher interests of the nation and the good of the Haitian people may prevail .

4 . In this perspective , we the Bishops of the Catholic Church in Haiti , decree Feb. 7, 2014 , a day of fasting and prayer in all dioceses , parishes , chapels and communities. We believe in the power of prayer as it is the encounter with the living God -an encounter opening up new horizons , unites us to the Lord our God and unites us to one another in the light of faith , Hope and Charity . It is also the inexhaustible source of all personal and collective efforts in favor of the common good .

5 . We invite all Catholic faithful , all Priests , Religious , Religious , all Christians , all believers, all men and all women of good will to engage in this prayerful initiative to accompany , support and carry forward national dialogue that aims at nothing but the material and spiritual welfare of all Haitians.

6 . We take this opportunity to announce that the Church in Haiti will hold a Mass at Sylvio Cator Stadium , Sunday, March 9, 2014 , at 3:00 pm to give thanks to God for the gift of a Haitian Cardinal to the universal Church .

7 . May the Lord our God bless us and bless this efforts in favor of reconciliation , peace and genuine development of the Haitian people !

8 . May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Perpetual Help , Patroness of Haiti , watch over and protect us !

Given to Lillavois at the Headquarters of the CEH , the feast of St. John Bosco, 31 January 2014 .

البابا فرنسيس: كلمة يسوع تحفظنا من السقوط في الخطيئة

"يمكننا أن نقاوم التجارب فقط إن أصغينا لكلمة يسوع" هذا ما أكده قداسة البابا فرنسيس صباح اليوم الثلاثاء في عظته مترئسًا القداس الإلهي في كابلة بيت القديسة مرتا بالفاتيكان وذكر أن المسيح يمنحنا الثقة دائمًا بالرغم من ضعفنا ويفتح قلوبنا على أفق أوسع من محدوديتنا.

قال الأب الأقدس: تظهر التجربة أولاً جذّابةً لتتحول بعدها وتصبح قفصًا غالبًا ما لا يمكننا الخروج منه. توقف الأب الأقدس في عظته عند القراءة الأولى التي تقدمها لنا الليتورجيا اليوم من رسالة القديس يعقوب وقال: نجد في هذا النص حقيقة وتتابعًا: فالحقيقة هي أن "اللهَ لا يُجَرِّبُه الشَّرُّ ولا يُجَرِّبُ أَحَدًا في حينِ أَنَّ لكُلِ إنسانٍ شهوةً تُجَرِّبُه فتَستَهويه وتُغويه"، أما التتابع فهو ناتج عن الشهوة وكما يقول القديس يعقوب: "والشَّهوَةُ إِذا حَبِلَت وَلَدَتِ الخَطيئَة، والخَطيئَةُ إِذا تمَّ أَمرُها وَلَدَتِ المَوت".

تابع الأب الأقدس يتساءل: من أين تأتي التجربة؟ كيف تعمل في داخلنا؟ يقول لنا الرسول أنها لا تأتي من الله وإنما من شهواتنا وضعفنا الداخلي، ومن الجراح التي خلّفتها فينا الخطيئة الأصليّة. ولكل تجربة ثلاث ميزات: فهي تنمو وتعدي وتبرّر أسبابها. تولد بطريقة هادئة ومن ثم تنمو... تمامًا كما يخبرنا يسوع في مثل القمح والزؤان: نما القمح لكن الزؤان الذي زرعه عدو ذلك الرجل نما أيضًا، وهكذا التجربة أيضًا، تنمو وتنمو وإن لم نوقفها تستولي على كلّ شيء.

أضاف الحبر الأعظم يقول: وبالتالي، فإن التجربة تبحث دائمًا عن من يرافقها لذلك وخلال نموها تسبب العدوى أيضًا، وتغلقنا في بيئة يُصعب الخروج منها بسهولة. وهذه هي خبرة الرسل الذي يخبرنا عنها الإنجيل الذي تقدمه لنا الليتورجيا اليوم من إنجيل القديس مرقس: إذ نسي الرسل أن يأخذوا خبزًا ولَم يَكُن عِندَهم في السَّفينَة سِوى رَغيف واحِد، فجعَلوا يتجادَلونَ لأَنَّه لا خُبزَ عِندَهم. فأخذ يسوع يوصيهم فيقول: "تَبَصروا واحذَروا خمير الفرِيسِيِّين وخميرَ هيرودس"، لكنهم كانوا منهمكين في الجدال في إلقاء اللوم بعضهم على بعض ولم يفسحوا المجال ليسمعوا كلمة الله ويستنيروا بها.

وهكذا هي الحال بالنسبة لنا نحن أيضًا، تابع البابا يقول، إذ عندما نكون في تجربة لا نصغي إلى كلمة الله ولا نفهمها. ولذلك ذكر يسوع تلاميذه بأعجوبة تكثير الخبز ليساعدهم على الخروج من جدالهم لأن التجربة تغلق أمامنا كلّ الآفاق وتمنع عنا كل قدرة على التمييز وتحملنا على الوقوع في الخطيئة. لذلك وعندما نكون في وسط التجارب وحدها كلمة الله وكلمة يسوع بإمكانهما أن تنقذاننا! بالإصغاء إلى كلمات يسوع ينفتح الأفق أمامنا... فيسوع جاهز دائمًا ليعلمنا كيفية التغلب على التجارب والخروج منها، ويثق بنا أيضًا. وهذه الثقة هي قوة عظيمة لنا عندما نكون في التجارب! فالرب ينتظرنا ويثق بنا بالرغم من خطايانا وتجاربنا ويفتح أمامنا آفاقًا جديدةً، أما الشيطان والتجربة فيغلقاننا على أنفسنا ويحبساننا في بيئة تنمو فيها التجارب وتقود إلى الخطيئة. وحده الإصغاء لكلمة يسوع قادر على إخراجنا من سجن التجارب.

وختم البابا فرنسيس عظته بالقول: لنطلب من الله دائمًا أن يعاملنا بصبر وسط تجاربنا كما عامل تلاميذه ويقول لكل منا: "قف واهدأ تذكر ما فعلته لك في ذلك الوقت. ارفع عينيك وانظر إلى الأفق ولا تنغلق على نفسك" وكلمات يسوع هذه ستنقذنا من التجربة وتمنعنا من السقوط في الخطيئة.

Majina ya wenyeheri watarajiwa!

Baba Mtakatifu Francisko hivi karibuni ameridhia kuchapwa kwa nyaraka mbali mbali zinazowahusu watumishi wa Mungu na wenyeheri katika mchakato wa kutangazwa kuwa watakatifu kama zilivyowasilishwa kwake na Kardinali Angelo Amato, Mwenyekiti wa Baraza la Kipapa la kuwatangaza waamini kuwa wenyeheri na watakatifu. Kati yao kuna:

Mtumishi wa Mungu Padre Piet Asua Mendia, kutoka Hispania, aliyezaliwa tarehe 30 Agosti 1890 na kuuwawa kutokana na chuki za kidini tarehe 29 Agosti 1936.

Mtumishi wa Mungu Padre Giuseppe Girelli kutoka Jimbo la Verona, Italia, aliyezaliwa tarehe 10 Januari 1886 na kufariki dunia Mei Mosi 1978 kutokana na ushupavu wake wa kiimani.

Kanisa limetambua karama ya ushupavu wa kiimani ulioneshwa na Mtumishi wa Mungu Padre Zaccaria di Santa Teresa wa Shirika la Wakrameli, aliyezaliwa kunako tarehe 5 Novemba 1887 na kufariki dunia tarehe 23 Mei 1957, akiwa nchini India.

Mama Kanisa ametambua ushupavu wa kiimani ulioshuhudiwa na Mtumishi wa Mungu Marcella Mallet, Mwanzilishi wa Shirika la Masista wa Upendo, Quebec, aliyezaliwa tarehe 26 Machi 1805 na kufariki dunia hapo tarehe 9 Aprili 1871.

Wengine katika orodha hii ni pamoja na Mtumishi wa Mungu Maria Benadetta Aria, Mwanzilishi wa Shirika la Masista wahudumu wa Yesu katika Sakramenti, aliyezaliwa tarehe 3 Aprili 1822 huko Buenos Aires, Argentina na kufariki dunia tarehe 25 Septemba 1894 kutoka na ushupavu wake wa kiimani.

Kanisa linatambua ushupavu wa kiimani uliojidhihirisha katika maisha ya Mtumishi wa Mungu Margharita wa Moyo Mtakatifu wa Yesu, Mwanzilishi wa Shirika la Masista Wafranciskani wa Moyo Mtakatifu wa Yesu, aliyezaliwa kunako tarehe 28 Novemba 1862 huko Malta na kufariki dunia tarehe 22 Januari 1952.

Mama Kanisa anatambua fadhila za ushupavu wa kiimani zilizooneshwa kwa namna ya pekee katika maisha ya Mtumishi wa Mungu Serafina wa Shirika la Masista Waabuduo Damu Takatifu ya Yesu, aliyezaliwa tarehe 31 Januari 1913 na kufariki dunia hapo tarehe 21 Oktoba 1988 huko Manaus, Brazil.

Mwishoni, Kanisa limetambua pia fadhila za kiimani zilizojitokeza katika maisha ya Mtumishi wa Mungu Elizabeth Sanna, mjane na mwamini mlei, aliyejifunga kwa nadhiri katika Utawa wa watu wa Mtakatifu Francisko katika huduma ya upendo na mshikamano ulioanzishwa na Mtakatifu Vinzent wa Paolo. Yeye alizaliwa tarehe 23 Aprili 1788 Sassari, Italia na kufariki dunia tarehe 17 Februari 1857 mjini Roma.

Daily Reading for Wednesday, February 19th, 2014

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Reading 1, James 1:19-27

¹⁹ Remember this, my dear brothers: everyone should be quick to listen but slow to speak and slow to human anger;
²⁰ God's saving justice is never served by human anger;
²¹ so do away with all impurities and remnants of evil. Humbly welcome the Word which has been planted in you and can save your souls.
²² But you must do what the Word tells you and not just listen to it and deceive yourselves.
²³ Anyone who listens to the Word and takes no action is like someone who looks at his own features in a mirror and,
²⁴ once he has seen what he looks like, goes off and immediately forgets it.
²⁵ But anyone who looks steadily at the perfect law of freedom and keeps to it -- not listening and forgetting, but putting it into practice -- will be blessed in every undertaking.
²⁶ Nobody who fails to keep a tight rein on the tongue can claim to be religious; this is mere self-deception; that person's religion is worthless.
²⁷ Pure, unspoilt religion, in the eyes of God our Father, is this: coming to the help of orphans and widows in their hardships, and keeping oneself uncontaminated by the world.

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Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 15:2-3, 3-4, 5

² Whoever lives blamelessly, who acts uprightly, who speaks the truth from the heart,
³ who keeps the tongue under control, who does not wrong a comrade, who casts no discredit on a neighbour,
⁴ who looks with scorn on the vile, but honours those who fear Yahweh, who stands by an oath at any cost,
⁵ who asks no interest on loans, who takes no bribe to harm the innocent. No one who so acts can ever be shaken.

---

Gospel, Mark 8:22-26

²² They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought to him a blind man whom they begged him to touch.
²³ He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. Then, putting spittle on his eyes and laying his hands on him, he asked, 'Can you see anything?'
²⁴ The man, who was beginning to see, replied, 'I can see people; they look like trees as they walk around.'
²⁵ Then he laid his hands on the man's eyes again and he saw clearly; he was cured, and he could see everything plainly and distinctly.
²⁶ And Jesus sent him home, saying, 'Do not even go into the village.'

St. Monica

Feastday: August 27

Patron of Wives and Abuse Victims
Died: 387

St. Monica was married by arrangement to a pagan official in North Africa, who was much older than she, and although generous, was also violent tempered. His mother Lived with them and was equally difficult, which proved a constant challenge to St. Monica. She had three children; Augustine, Navigius, and Perpetua. Through her patience and prayers, she was able to convert her husband and his mother to the Catholic faith in 370. He died a year later. Perpetua and Navigius entered the religious Life. St. Augustine was much more difficult, as she had to pray for him for 17 years, begging the prayers of priests who, for a while, tried to avoid her because of her persistence at this seemingly hopeless endeavor. One priest did console her by saying, "it is not possible that the son of so many tears should perish." This thought, coupled with a vision that she had received strengthened her. St. Augustine was baptized by St. Ambrose in 387. St. Monica died later that same year, on the way back to Africa from Rome in the Italian town of Ostia.

 

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from Wikipedia Saint Monica^[1] (AD 331^[2] – 387), also known as Monica of Hippo, (Be. Timaniket) was an early Christian saint and the mother of St. Augustine of Hippo. She is honoured in the Roman Catholic Church where she is remembered and venerated for her outstanding Christian virtues, particularly the suffering against the adultery of her husband, and a prayerful life dedicated to the reformation of her son, who wrote extensively of her pious acts and life with her in his Confessions. Popular Christian legends recall Saint Monica to have wept every night for her son Augustine.

Contents

• 1 Life
• 2 Veneration
• 3 In popular culture
• 4 Gallery
• 5 References
• 6 Bibliography
• 7 External links

Life[edit]

Because of her name and place of birth, Monica is assumed to have been of Berber origin.^[3] She was married early in life to Patricius, a pagan, who held an official position in Tagaste (present-day Souk Ahras, Algeria). Patricius had a violent temper and appears to have been of dissolute habits. In addition, her mother-in-law seems to have been of a like disposition. Her alms deeds and her habits of prayer annoyed him, but it is said that he always held her in respect.^[4]
Monica had three children who survived infancy: Augustine the eldest, Navigius the second, and a daughter, Perpetua. Monica had been unable to secure baptism for her children, and she experienced much grief when Augustine fell ill. In her distress she asked Patritius to allow Augustine to be baptized; Patritius agreed, but on the boy's recovery withdrew his consent.
All Monica's anxiety now centered in Augustine; he was wayward and, as he himself tells us, lazy. He was sent to school at Madaurus.Her husband died while the 17 year old Augustine was studying rhetoric in Carthage.^[4]
At Carthage Augustine had become a Manichaean and when on his return home he shared his views regarding Manichaeism, Monica drove him away from her table. However, she is said to have experienced a vision that convinced her to reconcile with her son.^[4]

Saint Augustine and his mother, Saint Monica (painting from 1846)

It was at this time that she went to see a certain holy bishop, whose name is not given, but who consoled her with the now famous words, "the child of those tears shall never perish." Monica followed her wayward son to Rome, where he had gone secretly; when she arrived he had already gone to Milan, but she followed him. Here she found St. Ambrose and through him she ultimately had the joy of seeing Augustine convert to Christianity, after seventeen years of resistance.
In his book Confessions, Augustine wrote of a peculiar practice of his mother in which she "brought to certain oratories, erected in the memory of the saints, offerings of porridge, bread, and wine."^[5] When she moved to Milan, the bishop Ambrose forbade her to use the offering of wine, since "it might be an occasion of gluttony for those who were already given to drink". So, Augustine wrote of her:

In place of a basket filled with fruits of the earth, she had learned to bring to the oratories of the martyrs a heart full of purer petitions, and to give all that she could to the poor - so that the communion of the Lord's body might be rightly celebrated in those places where, after the example of his passion, the martyrs had been sacrificed and crowned.

— Confessions 6.2.2

Mother and son spent six months of true peace at Rus Cassiciacum (present-day Cassago Brianza) after which time Augustine was baptized in the church of St. John the Baptist at Milan. Africa claimed them, however, and they set out on their journey, stopping at Civitavecchia and at Ostia. Here death overtook Monica and the finest pages of Augustine's Confessions were penned as the result of the emotion he then experienced.

Veneration[edit]

Saint Monica's tomb, Basilica di Sant'Agostino, Rome

Saint Monica was buried at Ostia, and at first seems to have been almost forgotten, though her body was removed during the 6th century to a hidden crypt in the church of Santa Aurea in Osta. Monica was buried near the tomb of St. Aurea of Ostia.^[6] It was later transferred to the Augustinian Basilica of Sant'Agostino in Rome.
Anicius Bassus wrote Monica's funerary epitaph, which survived in ancient manuscripts.^[6] The actual stone on which it was written was rediscovered in the summer of 1945 in the church of Santa Aurea. The fragment was discovered after two boys were digging a hole to plant a football post in the courtyard beside Santa Aurea.^[7]
A translation from the Latin, by Douglas Boin, reads as:

Here the most virtuous mother of a young man set her ashes, a second light to your merits, Augustine. As a priest, serving the heavenly laws of peace, you taught [or, you teach] the people entrusted to you with your character. A glory greater than the praise of your accomplishments crowns you both - Mother of the Virtues, more fortunate because of her offspring.^[6]

About the 13th century, however, the cult of St. Monica began to spread and a feast in her honour was kept on 4 May. In 1430 Pope Martin V ordered the relics to be brought to Rome. Many miracles occurred on the way, and the cultus of St. Monica was definitely established. Later the Archbishop of Rouen, Cardinal d'Estouteville, built a church at Rome in honour of St. Augustine, the Basilica di Sant'Agostino, and deposited the relics of St. Monica in a chapel to the left of the high altar. The Office of St. Monica, however, does not seem to have found a place in the Roman Breviary before the 16th century.
The city of Santa Monica, California, is named after Monica. A legend states that in the 18th century Father Juan Crespí named a local dripping spring Las Lagrimas de Santa Monica ("Saint Monica’s Tears") (today known as the Serra Springs) that was reminiscent of the tears that Saint Monica shed over her son's early impiety.^[8] As recorded in his diary, however, Crespí actually named the place San Gregorio.^[8] What is known for certain is that by the 1820s, the name Santa Monica was in use and its first official mention occurred in 1827 in the form of a grazing permit.^[8] There is a statue of this saint in Santa Monica's Palisades Park by sculptor Eugene Morahan; it was completed in 1934.^[9]

In popular culture[edit]

The "weeping" springs outside Santa Monica, California were named for the saint.
In the 2012 film Restless Heart: The Confessions of Saint Augustine, Saint Monica is portrayed by Italian actress Monica Guerritore.

Gallery[edit]

• 

  Marriage of Saint Monica by Antonio Vivarini, 1441
  
• 

  Statue of St. Monica on the facade of a former Augustinian church in Tábor, Czech Republic, ca. 1700
  
• 

  The Angel Appears to Saint Monica by Pietro Maggi, 1714
  
• 

  Fresco by Simon Benedikt Faistenberger, 1749
  

References[edit]

1. ^ "...Augustine's mother's name, Monica, is Berber ... the names Monnica and Nonnica are found on tombstones in the Libyan language - as such Monnica is the only Berber name commonly used in English", Michael Brett and Elizabeth Fentress, The Berbers, Wiley-Blackwell, 1997, p.71, 293
2. ^ The Liturgy of the Hours, Volume IV. Proper of Saints, August 27.
3. ^ Michael Brett and Elizabeth Fentress, The Berbers, Wiley-Blackwell, 1997, p.71.
4. ^ ^{a b c} Foley O.F.M., Leonard. Saint of the Day, Lives, Lessons, and Feast, (revised by Pat McCloskey O.F.M.) Franciscan Media
5. ^ Confessions 6.2.2
6. ^ ^{a b c} "Church of Sant'Aurea". Ostia-Antica.org. Retrieved March 15, 2011.
7. ^ Peter Brown, Augustine of Hippo: A Biography, Revised Edition with a New Epilogue (University of California Press, 2000), 124.
8. ^ ^{a b c} Paula A. Scott, Santa Monica: a history on the edge. Making of America series (Arcadia Publishing, 2004), 17-18.
9. ^ "Santa Monica Sculpture". You Are Here.com. ?. Retrieved March 14, 2011.

Bibliography[edit]

• Peter Brown, Augustine of Hippo: A Biography. New edition with an epilogue, Berkeley, University of California Press, c2000
• Everett Ferguson, Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, Taylor & Francis, 1998, p. 776
• John J. O'Meara, The Young Augustine:the growth of St. Augustine's mind up to his conversion, London, Longmans, Green and Co, 1954

•  "St. Monica". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913.
• Saint Monica at EWTN
• Saint Monica at Sacred Texts