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Saturday, October 15, 2022

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St. Teresa of Jesus


Ephesians 1:15-23
Psalm 8:2-7
Luke 12:8-12

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responsibilities and revelations

“May He enlighten your innermost vision that you may know the great hope to which He has called you, the wealth of His glorious heritage to be distributed among the members of the Church, and the immeasurable scope of His power in us who believe.” —Ephesians 1:18-19

Are you full of hope? Are you wealthy? (see 2 Cor 8:9) Do you know you can be “clothed with power from on high”? (Lk 24:49) The key to knowing our hope, wealth, and power is knowing our responsibilities. If we know God has given us responsibilities, we begin seeking God’s revelation concerning what He has provided to meet these responsibilities.

We are responsible to acknowledge Jesus before men (Lk 12:8). We are even responsible to make disciples of all nations (Mt 28:19). This is not only the responsibility of the whole Church but also of each of us as members of Christ’s Body. We all are missionaries. We will be held accountable for this on Judgment Day. Furthermore, we must win over to Jesus as many people as possible, even if we have to become the slaves of all (1 Cor 9:19). It is an unspeakable tragedy to lose even one sheep (see Mt 18:14). We are under compulsion to share our faith to the maximum. We are ruined if we don’t (see 1 Cor 9:16).

With these responsibilities in mind, we can know our hope, wealth, and power and have our innermost vision enlightened. We can get in touch with reality and not be shocked on Judgment Day. When we know what we must do, we are then in a position to find out who we are in Christ (Mt 10:39).

Prayer:  Father, may I know You and myself. Through the intercession of St. Teresa of Jesus, I ask to be a missionary.

Promise:  “The Holy Spirit will teach you at that moment all that should be said.” —Lk 12:12

Praise:  St. Teresa’s father kept a collection of spiritual books in their home. He was unaware his pious daughter would one day write some of Catholicism’s spiritual masterpieces.

Reference:  

Rescript:  In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from October 1, 2022, through November 30, 2022. Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio January 3, 2022

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.