Daily Thoughts: We come this morning to the Feast of St. Agatha, one of the early martyrs of the Church. What we know about her is mostly legend. I find it interesting that as we celebrate her spirit today we hear in the Gospel about two women, one who is cured and the other who is brought back to life. We also hear in the first reading about the "cloud of witnesses" that surrounds us on our journey of faith. I guess in a unique way our celebrate of St. Agatha and our readings together give us much food for thought.
I have always liked that phrase "cloud of witnesses." The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews is talking about all who have died in faith, the Communion of Saints as we often say today. He is telling the community that as they journey, this cloud of witnesses is with them through all their struggles and challenges. It must have been a source of great comfort to those facing challenges to their faith. We might say that St. Agatha is one of those witnesses that we can draw comfort today. She never let go of her faith even under profound challenges.
The two women in our Gospel story are different, one is just a child who faces death, the other has lived many years and has faced a great physical struggle for a number of those years. For one women it is the faith of her family that makes all the difference, for the other it is her own faith that makes the difference. This is what brings these women together, faith. Faith if lived out can give us the opportunity to be cured; faith can also give us life!
The thread that runs through our readings and the feast we celebrate today is the thread of faith. St. Agatha relied on faith to see her through her struggles and challenges. The two women in our Gospel relied on faith to bring about comfort, relief and life. We, the community of faith, rely on the faith of those who have gone before us, "the cloud of witnesses" to keep us going, to support us on the journey of faith.
Faith can be a comfort, faith is always a challenge but remember it can bring healing, it can bring support and it can bring life. Let us be faith filled people today so that we to can be a source of healing, comfort, support and life to all we meet!
Daily Prayer: O God, give strength to our faith, so that we can be a source of support, comfort, healing and life as we make our journey through this day. Help us to draw upon the faith of all who have gone before us, trusting that they are always with us. Give us the courage to reach out and touch you when we most need it today. Make us aware of those in need of life today so that we may bring you to them. May we not grow weary or lose heart today. Amen!
Runner's Thought: Let us accept our run today for what it is, remembering that this is a spiritual practice that, like any exercise, requires persistence through experiences of success and what seems like failure.
Have a great Tuesday everyone! We had a wonderful opening to the mission yesterday here at Holy Family in Orlando. There was a nice crowd in the morning and evening, with a great spirit. I am looking forward to today and I ask your continued prayers for the faith community and the preacher!
I pray your day will go well and be all that you need and want it to be, Many blessings on your journey today may it be a source of life for you and all you meet! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul
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