Isaiah 40:9-11 Go up onto a high mountain, Zion, herald of glad tidings; cry out at the top of your voice, Jerusalem, herald of good news! Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God! St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan in the 4th century, was a noted theologian…
Mt. 10:1, 7-8 …as it is written in the words of Isaiah the Prophet: “A herald’s voice in the desert, crying, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, clear him a straight path. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be leveled. The windings shall be made straight and the rough…
Mt. 10:1, 7-8 Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority to expel unclean spirits and to cure sickness and disease of every kind… As you go, make this announcement: ‘The reign of God is at hand!’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, expel demons. The gift you have received,…
Isaiah 29:18-19 On that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book; and out of gloom and darkness, the eyes of the blind shall see. The lowly will ever find joy in the Lord, and the poor rejoice in the Holy One of Israel. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1858, Katharine Mary Drexel’s…
Matthew 7:24-25 “Anyone who hears my words and puts them into practice is like the wise man who built his house on rock. When the rainy season set in, the torrent came and the winds blew and buffeted his house. It did not collapse; it had been solidly set on rock. Anyone who hears my…
Isaiah 25:8-9 He will destroy death forever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces; the reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the Lord has spoken. On that day it will be said: “Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us! This is the…
Mt. 4:18-20 As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” At once they left their nets and…
Isaiah 2:4-5 He shall judge between the nations, and impose terms on many peoples.They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks; One nation shall not raise the sword against another, nor shall they train for war again. Born in Transkei, South Africa, on July 18, 1918, Nelson Mandela was the…
1 Thes. 3:12-4:2 Brothers and sisters: May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we have for you, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen. At…
(The shepherds) went in haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in the manger; once they saw, they understood what had been told them concerning this child. All who heard of it were astonished at the report given them by the shepherds. Mary treasured all these things and reflected on them in…