Treasures of Our Faith with Deacon Richard Vehige

On Thursday of the Thirty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the second letter of the apostle Peter (2: 9-22) entitled "The condemnation of the wicked". Our treasure, which follows, is from a homily on Matthew by Saint John Chrysostom, bishop.

Saint John Chrysostom was an important, fourth century, Early Church Father who served as Archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, and for his denunciation of abuse of authority of both ecclesiastical and political leaders. He was among the most prolific authors in the early Christian church. The word 'Chrysostom' means 'golden-mounted'. This name was given to him after he died because all his sermons were eloquent and lovely to hear.

St. John Chrysostom's homilies on the Gospel of Matthew. Widely regarded as an eloquent speaker, these homilies are a wonder to behold. These spiritually enlightening texts have aided Christians for over a thousand years, and remain instructive and fruitful even today!

The second letter of the Apostle Peter can be appreciated both for its positive teachings and for its earnest warnings. It seeks to strengthen readers in faith, hope for the future, knowledge, love, and other virtues. This aim is carried out especially by warning against false teachers, the condemnation of whom occupies the long central section of the letter. A particular crisis is the claim by "scoffers" that there will be no second coming of Jesus, a doctrine that the author vigorously affirms. The concept of God's "promises" is particularly precious in the theology of 2 Peter. Closing comments well sum up the twin concerns: that you not "be led into" error and "fall" but instead "grow in grace" and "knowledge" of Jesus Christ.

Second Peter is clearly structured in its presentation of these points. It reminds its readers of the divine authenticity of Christ's teaching, continues with reflections on Christian conduct, then returns to the exalted dignity of Jesus by incorporating into the text the apostolic witness to his transfiguration. It takes up the question of the interpretation of scripture by pointing out that it is possible to misunderstand the sacred writings and that divine punishment will overtake false teachers. It proclaims that the parousia is the teaching of the Lord and of the apostles and is therefore an eventual certainty. At the same time, it warns that the meaning of Paul's writings on this question should not be distorted.

On Tuesday of the Thirty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the second letter of the apostle Peter (1: 12-21) entitled "The witness of the apostles and the prophets". Our treasure, which follows, is from a treatise on John by Saint Augustine, bishop.

Saint Augustine was born at Tagaste in Africa in 354. He was unsettled and restlessly searched for the truth until he was converted to the faith at Milan and baptized by Ambrose. Returning to his homeland, he embraced an ascetic life and subsequently was elected bishop of Hippo. For thirty-four years he guided his flock, instructing it with sermons and many writings. He fought bravely against the errors of his time and explained the Faith carefully and cogently through his writings. He is also a preeminent Catholic Doctor of the Church. His writings influenced the development of western philosophy and western Christianity, and he is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period. He died in 430.

The "Tractates on the Gospel of John" are actually 124 pieces of writing. Augustine used the word "tractate" for any prepared spoken communication. Many of these tractates he delivered as homilies or sermons from the pulpit, and they were copied by stenographers in the congregation; others he dictated directly to stenographers in private, but in a way that they could later be read aloud in a church as a homily by others. His commentary on the Gospel of John is primarily pastoral rather than consciously being highly theological. Augustine's focus in these tractates is on Incarnation, or the Word made flesh. This is not only a distinctive and important theme in the Gospel of John; it was a significant part of Augustine's own conversion, as mentioned in the Confessions.

The second letter of the Apostle Peter can be appreciated both for its positive teachings and for its earnest warnings. It seeks to strengthen readers in faith, hope for the future, knowledge, love, and other virtues. This aim is carried out especially by warning against false teachers, the condemnation of whom occupies the long central section of the letter. A particular crisis is the claim by "scoffers" that there will be no second coming of Jesus, a doctrine that the author vigorously affirms. The concept of God's "promises" is particularly precious in the theology of 2 Peter. Closing comments well sum up the twin concerns: that you not "be led into" error and "fall" but instead "grow in grace" and "knowledge" of Jesus Christ.

Second Peter is clearly structured in its presentation of these points. It reminds its readers of the divine authenticity of Christ's teaching, continues with reflections on Christian conduct, then returns to the exalted dignity of Jesus by incorporating into the text the apostolic witness to his transfiguration. It takes up the question of the interpretation of scripture by pointing out that it is possible to misunderstand the sacred writings and that divine punishment will overtake false teachers. It proclaims that the parousia is the teaching of the Lord and of the apostles and is therefore an eventual certainty. At the same time, it warns that the meaning of Paul's writings on this question should not be distorted.

On Monday of the Thirty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from beginning of the second letter of the apostle Peter (1: 1-11) entitled "An exhortation concerning the way of salvation". Our treasure, which follows, is from a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope.

Saint Leo became pope in the year 440. Saint Leo was a Roman aristocrat, and was the first pope to have been called "the Great". Saint Leo is known as one of the best administrative popes of the ancient Church .His work branched into many areas of the church, indicative of his notion of the pope's total responsibility for the flock of Christ. In the 96 sermons which have come down to us, we find Leo stressing the virtues of almsgiving, fasting, and prayer, and also expounding Catholic doctrine with clarity and conciseness, in particular, the dogma of the Incarnation. Leo is perhaps best known for having met Attila the Hun in 452 and having persuaded him to turn back from his invasion of Italy.

The second letter of the Apostle Peter can be appreciated both for its positive teachings and for its earnest warnings. It seeks to strengthen readers in faith, hope for the future, knowledge, love, and other virtues. This aim is carried out especially by warning against false teachers, the condemnation of whom occupies the long central section of the letter. A particular crisis is the claim by "scoffers" that there will be no second coming of Jesus, a doctrine that the author vigorously affirms. The concept of God's "promises" is particularly precious in the theology of 2 Peter. Closing comments well sum up the twin concerns: that you not "be led into" error and "fall" but instead "grow in grace" and "knowledge" of Jesus Christ.

Second Peter is clearly structured in its presentation of these points. It reminds its readers of the divine authenticity of Christ's teaching, continues with reflections on Christian conduct, then returns to the exalted dignity of Jesus by incorporating into the text the apostolic witness to his transfiguration. It takes up the question of the interpretation of scripture by pointing out that it is possible to misunderstand the sacred writings and that divine punishment will overtake false teachers. It proclaims that the parousia is the teaching of the Lord and of the apostles and is therefore an eventual certainty. At the same time, it warns that the meaning of Paul's writings on this question should not be distorted.

Today, November 23, as our church celebrates the Memorial of Clement of Rome, Pope and Martyr, we are encouraged to read and reflect on a passage from the second letter of the apostle Paul to the Corinthians (4:7—5:8), entitled "The power of Christ is made manifest in our sufferings". Our treasure, which follows, is from a letter to the Corinthians by Saint Clement, pope.

Clement of Rome was the third successor of Saint Peter, reigning as pope from 88 AD until his death in 99 AD. He's known as one of the Church's five "Apostolic Fathers," those who provided a direct link between the Apostles and later generations of Church Fathers. His letter to the church at Corinth is in response to a dispute in which certain presbyters of the Corinthian church had been deposed. He asserted the authority of the presbyters as rulers of the Corinthian church on the ground that the Apostles had appointed such.

Saint Clement's letter to the Corinthians is one of the earliest documents of Christianity that we have, after the Epistles and the Acts, to show us how the Church was developing. It was written shortly after Apostolic times, the scholars put it at between 80 and 100 AD. Its main subject - Clement's answer to a problem that the church of Corinth had raised with him - shows the relationship of the local churches to each other. The church of Corinth had obviously written to the bishop of Rome for advice, and the latter answered admonishing them, using references to the letter of Paul to those same Corinthians, written some decades earlier and obviously still familiar to them, as well as other passages from various writings of the Apostles that are now part of the New Testament (which was not compiled yet.) The letter shows us two things: (1) the local churches were in unity with each other, and the Bishop of Rome had enough authority to be asked for advice by the community in Corinth (Greece) and for his advice to be followed. (2) that various writings of the Apostles - later to be "canonized" in the New Testament - were already circulating among the churches and known by all of them.

The Second Letter to the Corinthians is the most personal of all of Paul's extant writings, and it reveals much about his character. In it he deals with one or more crises that have arisen in the Corinthian church. The confrontation with these problems caused him to reflect deeply on his relationship with the community and to speak about it frankly. One moment he is venting his feelings of frustration and uncertainty, the next he is pouring out his relief and affection. The importance of the issues at stake between them calls forth from him an enormous effort of personal persuasion, as well as doctrinal considerations that are of great value for us.

On Friday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the book of the prophet Zechariah (12: 9-12a; 13:01-9) entitled "Salvation in Jerusalem". Our treasure, which follows, is from a treatise On the Kingdom of Jesus by Saint John Eudes, priest.

St. John Eudes was born in the diocese of Seez in France in the year 1601. After his ordination to the priesthood he spent several years in giving missions. Then he founded congregations dedicated to improving priestly formation and to encouraging morally endangered women to lead Christian lives. He also fostered great devotion to the hearts of Jesus and Mary. He died in 1680.

Saint John Eudes explains that the Kingdom of Jesus is a kingdom that will be ruled by God's appointed Messiah, who will be not just the Redeemer of His people, but their King. In this work he develops his spiritual teaching on the Christian life, laying out the principle that the life of the Christian is, in and of itself, a continued extension of the of Jesus in each and every one of us.

The Book of Zechariah, because of its great variation in style, content, and language, is widely believed to be a composite work. Made up of First and Second Zechariah, the book has been attributed to at least two different prophets. The prophecies of First Zechariah can be dated to the late sixth century B.C., contemporary with those of Haggai; the oracles of Second Zechariah are somewhat later.

The most striking feature of First Zechariah is a series of visions in which the prophet describes the centrality of Jerusalem, its Temple, and its leaders, who function both in the politics of the region and of the Persian empire and in God's universal rule. Zechariah was instrumental in organizing and inspiring the Jews to finish rebuilding the Temple which began in 520 B.C.

On Tuesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the book of the prophet Zechariah (9: 1—10: 2) entitled "Salvation is promised to Zion". Our treasure, which follows, is from a discourse by Saint Adrew of Crete, bishop.

Saint Andrew of Crete, also known as Andrew of Jerusalem, was an eighth century bishop, theologian, homilist, and hymnographer. He is venerated as a saint in both Eastern Orthodoxy and the Catholic Church. He is principally interesting to us in that he is credited with the invention of the canon, a new form of hymnody of which we have no intimation before his time. Nine canons are assigned to him.

The Book of Zechariah, because of its great variation in style, content, and language, is widely believed to be a composite work. Made up of First and Second Zechariah, the book has been attributed to at least two different prophets. The prophecies of First Zechariah can be dated to the late sixth century B.C., contemporary with those of Haggai; the oracles of Second Zechariah are somewhat later.

The most striking feature of First Zechariah is a series of visions in which the prophet describes the centrality of Jerusalem, its Temple, and its leaders, who function both in the politics of the region and of the Persian empire and in God's universal rule. Zechariah was instrumental in organizing and inspiring the Jews to finish rebuilding the Temple which began in 520 B.C.

Today, November 18, as our Church celebrates the Memorial of Rose Philippine Duchesne, we are invited to first read and reflect on a passage from the first letter of the apostle Paul, to the Corinthians (12: 31—13: 13), entitled "The primacy of charity". Our treasure, which follows, is from a homily on the Gospel of Matthew by Saint John Chrysostom, bishop.

St. John Chrysostom was born at Antioch about the year 349. After an extensive education he embraced a life of acetism. He was ordained a priest and distinguished himself by his preaching which achieved great spiritual results among hearers. He was elected Bishop of Constantinoble in 397 and proved himself a capable pastor, committed to reforming the life of the clergy and the faithful. Twice he was forced into exile by the hatred of the imperial court and the envy of his enemies. After he had completed his difficult labors, he died at Comana in Pontus on September 14, 407. His preaching and writing explained Catholic doctrine and presented the ideal Christian life. For this reason, he is called Chrysostom, or Golden Mouth.

The position of the Gospel according to Matthew as the first of the four gospels in the New Testament reflects both the view that it was the first to be written, a view that goes back to the late second century A.D., and the esteem in which it was held by the church; no other was so frequently quoted in the noncanonical literature of earliest Christianity. Although the majority of scholars now reject the opinion about the time of its composition, the high estimation of this work remains. The reason for that becomes clear upon study of the way in which Matthew presents his story of Jesus, the demands of Christian discipleship, and the breaking-in of the new and final age through the ministry but particularly through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul warns against divisions within the Church and emphasizes the importance of unity among Church members. He warns members against sexual immorality, teaches that the body is a temple for the Holy Spirit, and encourages self-discipline.

Today, November 16, as our Church celebrates the Memorial of Margaret of Scotland, we are invited to read and reflect on a passage from the first letter of the apostle Paul, to the Corinthians (12: 31—13: 13), entitled "The primacy of charity". Our treasure, which follows, is from the pastoral constitution in the modern world of the Second Vatican Council.

Saint Margaret of Scotland was born around the year 1046. Margaret was the daughter of Princess Agatha of Hungary and the Anglo-Saxon Prince Edward Atheling. She was a truly liberated woman in the sense that she was free to be herself. For her, that meant freedom to love God and serve others. She spent much of her youth in the court of her great-uncle, the English king, Edward the Confessor. Her family fled from William the Conqueror and was shipwrecked off the coast of Scotland. King Malcolm befriended them and was captivated by the beautiful, gracious Margaret. They were married at the castle of Dunfermline in 1070.

Malcolm was good-hearted, but rough and uncultured, as was his country. Because of Malcolm's love for Margaret, she was able to soften his temper, polish his manners, and help him become a virtuous king. He left all domestic affairs to her, and often consulted her in state matters. Margaret tried to improve her adopted country by promoting the arts and education. For religious reform she encouraged synods and was present for the discussions which tried to correct religious abuses common among priests and laypeople, such as simony, usury, and incestuous marriages. With her husband, she founded several churches.

Margaret was the deal mother and queen. She and Malcolm had six sons and two daughters. Margaret personally supervised their religious instruction and other studies. She died in Edinburgh in 1093.

Gaudium et spes ("Joys and Hopes"), the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, is one of the four constitutions resulting from the Second Vatican Council in 1965. It was the last and longest published document from the council and is the first constitution published by a Catholic ecumenical council to address the entire world. Gaudium et spes clarified and reoriented the role of the church's mission to people outside of the Catholic faith. It was the first time that the church took explicit responsibility for its role in the larger world. The constitution's creation was necessitated by fear of the irrelevance in the modern era due to its ignorance on problems that plague the modern world. The document represents an inner examination of the church by the council and features a response to problems affecting the modern world.[1]

Within Gaudium et spes are the themes of gift of self and the promotion of peace. While initial reception of the document was focused on the shift in theological considerations, reception of Gaudium et spes today marks the document as a turning point in the Church's focus on the world.

In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul warns against divisions within the Church and emphasizes the importance of unity among Church members. He warns members against sexual immorality, teaches that the body is a temple for the Holy Spirit, and encourages self-discipline.

On Wednesday of the Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the book of the prophet Daniel (5; 1-2, 5-9, 13-17, 25---6: 1) entitled "The judgement of God at Belshazzar's banquet". Our treasure, which follows, is from a homily written in the second century.

The book of the prophet Daniel takes its name not from the author, who is actually unknown, but from its hero, who was allegedly among the first Jews deported to Babylon, where he lived at least until 538 B.C. Strictly speaking, the book does not belong to the prophetic writings but rather to a distinctive type of literature known as "apocalyptic," of which it is an early specimen. Apocalyptic writing first appears about 200 B.C. and flourished among Jews and Christians down to the Middle Ages, especially in times of persecution. Apocalyptic literature has its roots in the older teaching of the prophets, who often pointed ahead to the day of the Lord, the consummation of history. For both prophet and apocalyptist there was one Lord of history, who would ultimately vindicate the chosen people. Apocalyptic also has roots in the wisdom tradition. Daniel has the gift of discernment from God. Greek wisdom (represented by the Babylonian "magicians and enchanters") is ridiculed, whereas God reveals hidden things to faithful servants.

This work was composed during the bitter persecution carried on by Antiochus IV Epiphanes and was written to strengthen and comfort the Jewish people in their ordeal. The persecution was occasioned by Antiochus's efforts to unify his kingdom, in face of the rising power of Rome, by continuing the Hellenization begun by Alexander the Great; Antiochus tried to force Jews to adopt Greek ways, including religious practices. Severe penalties, including death, were exacted against those who refused.

On Tuesday of the Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the book of the prophet Daniel (3: 8-12, 19-24, 91-97) entitled "The king's golden statue. The three young men rescued from the furnace". Our treasure, which follows, is from a homily written in the second century.

The book of the prophet Daniel takes its name not from the author, who is actually unknown, but from its hero, who was allegedly among the first Jews deported to Babylon, where he lived at least until 538 B.C. Strictly speaking, the book does not belong to the prophetic writings but rather to a distinctive type of literature known as "apocalyptic," of which it is an early specimen. Apocalyptic writing first appears about 200 B.C. and flourished among Jews and Christians down to the Middle Ages, especially in times of persecution. Apocalyptic literature has its roots in the older teaching of the prophets, who often pointed ahead to the day of the Lord, the consummation of history. For both prophet and apocalyptist there was one Lord of history, who would ultimately vindicate the chosen people. Apocalyptic also has roots in the wisdom tradition. Daniel has the gift of discernment from God. Greek wisdom (represented by the Babylonian "magicians and enchanters") is ridiculed, whereas God reveals hidden things to faithful servants.

This work was composed during the bitter persecution carried on by Antiochus IV Epiphanes and was written to strengthen and comfort the Jewish people in their ordeal. The persecution was occasioned by Antiochus's efforts to unify his kingdom, in face of the rising power of Rome, by continuing the Hellenization begun by Alexander the Great; Antiochus tried to force Jews to adopt Greek ways, including religious practices. Severe penalties, including death, were exacted against those who refused.