January 28, 2016

Thomas Aquinas

January 28, 2016:  St. Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Doctor



  • 'Crown' tie bar:  King David (1st reading); God will give him David's throne (psalm)
  • 'Mansion' button:  Bless the house of your servant (1st reading)
  • 'Eyeball' pin:  I'll give my eyes no sleep (psalm)
  • 'Lights' tie:  Don't you place lamps on lampstands?  Everything will come to light.  See below re wire. (gospel)
  • 'Ruler' tie bar:  The measure you measure will be measured to you (gospel)
  • White in shirt:  Liturgical color for St. Thomas
Listen

For gospel
For psalm
From St. Thomas Aquinas
Pope Francis
Homily:  We Christians received God's light in Baptism and must give it.  We're witnesses of Christ, God's Light, so we must show his light.  When I prefer my own darkness, I'm not a true Christian; I need to put the light on the lampstand of my life.

Jesus says: "The measure you measure will be measured to you, and more will be given you."  Christians are magnanimous, because we're children of a magnanimous father, of great heart.  The Christian heart is magnanimous, always open, never selfishly closed in or calculating/limiting.  When you enter Jesus' light and friendship and let the Spirit guide you, your heart becomes magnanimous.  You lose, not gain, and in this 'defeat' you gain Jesus; you gain by becoming Jesus’ witness.
To bioethics committee:  The Church is sensitive to ethical issues.  It's important to serve everyone with attention and care, from the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.  The Church and civil society are called to cooperate.  Biotechnology may never be used detrimental to human dignity, or guided solely by industrial or commercial purposes.  Bioethical research on complex issues isn't easy and doesn't always quickly reach a harmonious conclusion; it requires humility and realism.  Please work in these areas:
  • Interdisciplinary analysis of the causes of environmental degradation:  formulate guidelines, in areas about life sciences, to stimulate conservation, preservation and care of the environment. 
  • Disability and marginalization of the vulnerable:  Tackle “the culture of waste” in its many forms, such as treating human embryos, the sick, and elderly approaching death as disposable. 
  • Increase international dialogue to reach harmonization of biological and medical standards and rules so they recognize core values ​​and fundamental rights.
Read
      1st-century lamp
    • 2 Sm 7:18-19, 24-29  King David prayed:  “Who are we that you have brought me to this point?  You've established your people and have become their God.  Confirm the prophecy you made concerning your servant and his house, and do as you have promised.  Bless the house of your servant, and it shall be blessed forever.”
    • Ps 132:1-5, 11-14  "The Lord God will give him the throne of David, his father." Remember David and his anxious care; God swore to set his offspring on the throne.
    • Mk 4:21-25  Is a lamp to be placed under a basket?  All that is hidden will come to light.  The measure you measure will be measured out to you.  Those who have will be given more; the others will lose the little they have.
    St. Thomas Aquinas:  original works online
      • From Fr. Paul Griesgraber's homily:  As a string of Christmas lights, we're lights connected to each other, but we must all be connected to a Power Source.  The 'house' God built for David was his descendants, leading to Jesus himself, in whom we all dwell.
      • Creighton:  My faith is first about God.  Acknowledging God loved us first leads to responding with gratitude to God and love for others.  Christian life is [re]discovering God loved us first, and responding accordingly.  King David was planning to build God a house (temple) till Nathan told him God was going to build him a "house" (dynasty).  What we listen to leads to how we'll “walk....”
      • One Bread, One Body:  "Going to extremes":  The more you share from God's Word, the more you'll receive....
      • Passionist:  St. Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican, taught, wrote, and contributed greatly to philosophy and theology; he's called "Angelic Doctor."  He stopped writing the Summa, his greatest work, about three months before he died, humbly saying, “I can't go on…  All I've written seems to me like straw compared to what I've seen and what's been revealed to me.”  He used the gifts God gave him, and his light continues to shine.  Can we place our lamp on a stand so others may see God's glory?  Can we serve humbly and faithfully as Thomas did?  Can we give up our unfinished agendas and accept God's plan for us and trust that what needs to be accomplished will happen in God’s time?
      • DailyScripture.net:  "The measure you give":  Lamps enable people to see and work in the dark and avoid stumbling.  The Jews understood 'light' as an expression of God's beauty, truth, and goodness. God's grace not only illumines our darkness but also fills us with spiritual light, joy, and peace.  We're to live in the light of Christ's truth and love.  Just as natural light illumines darkness, so the light of Christ shines in our hearts and enables us to see God's kingdom.  We're to be light-bearers of Christ so others may see the truth of the gospel....
      • Universalis:  St. Thomas Aquinas, Benedictine-educated Dominican, reconciled Christianity and Aristotle, wrote Summa Theologica and poetry for Corpus Christi liturgy.  After vision at Mass that made his writings seem like straw, he stopped.  [This great theologian and philosopher is patron of all Catholic educational establishments.]  May the Spirit inspire us to love God with our minds as well as hearts; and if we come across something apparently contradicting our faith, may we investigate...
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