Reflection for THURSDAY, 21st Week, Ordinary Time.

By

Fr. Aloysius Santiago sdb
Director, Social Action Movement, Don Bosco Bidar

 Today's Gospel verses


 Matthew 24:45-51


 Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?  It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.

Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

 Today's Reflection

Just as no one can say that he has never made a mistake, similarly no one can ever say that they had not lost focus or got distracted before.

The reality is that human beings are not machines.

We don’t run on a program or like clock-work. 

But even on that point, the fact is that machines do break down due to wear and tear and other issues.

When we profess our faith in God, we certainly want to be faithful and committed to Him with all our heart.

But there is also the human weakness, frailty and failings to reckon with.

In the gospel parable, we hear of the dishonest servant giving in to his own desires and being caught unexpectedly by his master.

But in the 1st reading, St. Paul tells us that Jesus will keep us steady and without blame.

We only need to have faith in God who is faithful to us.

Let us keep praying that we will always stay close to God and be faithful to Him, especially in times of trials and temptations

 Saint of the Day

 August 25 | St. Louis IX 

St. Louis was born to King Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile, at Poissy on April 25th 1215. Louis was made King at only 11 years of age, and was the father of 11 children. He led an exemplary life, bearing constantly in mind his mother's words: "I would rather see you dead at my feet than guilty of a mortal sin." His biographers have written of the long hours he spent in prayer, fasting, and penance, without the knowlege of his people. 

The French king was an avid lover of justice, who took great measures to ensure that the process of arbitration was carried out properly. All of 13th century Christian Europe willingly looked upon him as an international judge. 

He was renowned for his charity. "The peace and blessings of the realm come to us through the poor," he would say. Beggars were fed from his table; he ate their leavings, washed their feet, ministered to the wants of the lepers, and daily fed over one hundred poor. He founded many hospitals and houses: the House of the Felles-Dieu for reformed prostitutes, the Quinze-Vingt for 300 blind men (1254),  as well as hospitals at Pontoise, Vernon, Compiégne. 

St. Louis was a patron of architecture. The Sainte Chappelle, an architectural gem, was constructed in his reign as a reliquary for the Crown of Thorns, and it was under his patronage that Robert of Sorbonne founded the "Collège de la Sorbonne," which became the seat of the theological faculty of Paris, the most illustrious seat of learning in the medieval period.

St. Louis died of the plague near Tunis, August 25th, 1270, during the Second Crusade.  He is the patron of masons and builders.

St. Louis, pray for us.


   GOD BLESS YOU

Good morning. Have a nice day.

Happy feast of St Louis. IX