READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday: Heb 1:1-6; Ps 97:1, 2b, 6, 7c, 9; Mk 1:14-20
Tuesday: Heb 2:5-12; Ps 8:2ab, 5, 6-9; Mk 1:21-28
Wednesday: Heb 2:14-18; Ps 105:1-4, 6-9; Mk 1:29-39
Thursday: Heb 3:7-14; Ps 95:6-11; Mk 1:40-45
Friday: Heb 4:1-5, 11; Ps 78:3, 4bc, 6c-8; Mk 2:1-12
Saturday: Heb 4:12-16; Ps 19:8-10, 15; Mk 2:13-17
Sunday: Is 62:1-5; Ps 96:1-3, 7-10; 1 Cor 12:4-11; Jn 2:1-11
MASS INTENTIONS
Saturday: Health Intention for Alexia Boesen
Requested by Mary DeLost
Sunday: Thanksgiving to St. Jude
PRAYER LISTS BEING UPDATED
If you have anyone you want added to the following Pray Lists below or were already on the list before and want to continue to be on the list, you can call the office at 916 452- 6866 or email us at info@immaculateconceptionsacramento.org. (Also please remember to let us know when the names should be removed).
PRAY FOR THE CHRONICALLY ILL
Lilian Davila, Alex Piedra, Ron Sykes
-- NAMES --
PRAY FOR SPECIAL HEALTH INTENTIONS
Connie Bonilla, Noreen Crowley, Evelyn Elmer, Minnie Jimenez, Mary Katherine Hernandez, Loretta Hockings, Dorothy Manich, Irene Rodriguez, Dorothy Wanner
-- NAMES --
PRAY FOR SPECIAL INTENTIONS
Jacqueline Daste, Evelyn Borba, Socorro & Frank Godina
-- NAMES --
PRAY FOR SERVICE MEN AND WOMEN
Gabriel Granados, Michael Godina, Marco Mares Jr., Mariela del Carmen Mares
-- NAMES --
SELF-DISCIPLINE
The greatest of all warriors in the siege of Troy had not the preeminence because nature had given him strength and he carried the largest bow, but because self-discipline had taught him how to bend it.
—Daniel Webster
Reflection on the Readings
GOSPEL Luke 3:15-16, 21-22
The people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. John answered them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not worthy to loosen the thongs of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” After all the people had been baptized and Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”
My sisters and brothers in Christ,
The mystery of the Baptism of the Lord–with His Epiphany–are at the heart of our faith. These mysteries are less known in the Western Church than the mysteries of Christmas and Easter. In almost every way, the mysteries of the Epiphany and the Baptism are the same as the mystery of Christmas, the Nativity of the Lord. Christmas has enormous emotional overtones throughout the world and because of that, very often the understanding of preparation is lacking.
The first reading today, from the Prophet Isaiah, explains what it means to be prepared to meet the Lord: “A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God!” Who better would understand the gravity of this eventuality than we monks here at Monastery of Christ in the Desert. Our monastery is located in a remote place. One must take a 13-mile dirt road off the highway to reach the church. The road is mountainous, windy with multiple turns and dips—this is not written to discourage anyone from paying us a visit. So, when the prophet proclaims: “Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; the rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley”, we monks know what an awesome and awe-inspiring feat that would be! This is extreme preparation discernable in the physical world. But, what about our interior lives?
The second reading, from the Letter to Titus, explains even further what this preparation entails: “The grace of God has appeared, saving all and training us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age, as we await the blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of our great God and savior Jesus Christ.” St. John Chrysostom challenges us, too, when he spurs Christians: “We who are disciples of Christ claim that our purpose on earth is to lay up treasures in heaven. But our actions often contradict our words. Many Christians build for themselves fine houses, lay out splendid gardens, construct bathhouses, and buy fields. It is small wonder, then, that many non-believers refuse to believe what we say. ‘If their eyes are set on mansions in heaven,’ they ask, ‘why are they building mansions on earth? If they put their words into practice, they would give away their riches and live in simple huts.’ ” This may be easier for monks, but those living in the world approaching more revelry and excess in the upcoming days of a holiday season, it is a formidable challenge.
From Luke’s Gospel reading, people flocked to John the Baptist to seek a way to be faithful to God, or, in other words, to prepare to receive Him. There are Old Testament precedents of men and women preparing to receive a king, notwithstanding Jesus. Think of the preparation of Esther. “Now when the turn of each young lady came to go in to King Ahasuerus, after the end of her twelve months under the regulations for the women–for the days of their beautification were completed as follows: six months with oil of myrrh and six months with spices and the cosmetics for women …She would not again go in to the king unless the king delighted in her and she was summoned by name…And Esther found favor in the eyes of all who saw her” (Es 2:12-15). A person can do a great deal of changing in 12 hours, let alone a year and a half!
We are invited to believe in Jesus as the one, unique and only God. And He has come to save us. If we are baptized in Him, let us share His mercy and walk with faith. Let us steadfastly order our lives to be better able to receive His mercy. For if you desire to receive the Lord, then be prepared to change.
https://christdesert.org/2019/01/baptism-lord-c-2019-2/
RESPECT LIFE
As we remember the sad anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, you are invited to participate in the following: A novena called 9 Days for Life will take place leading up to and concluding on the annual Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children on January 22nd. The novena goes from January 14-22, and is available at 9DaysForLife.com, including choices to subscribe by email, text message, or mobile app. Bishop Jaime Soto has asked all to observe January 22, 2019 as a Diocesan Day of reparation through fasting, prayer, penance, and works of mercy. A Mass of Reparation will be held at the Cathedral at 12:10pm on January 22. The Walk for Life will be held in San Francisco on Saturday, January 26. Get your tickets to ride on the parish bus or drive yourself and meet us there!
.
CRISTO REY HIGH SCHOOL PLACEMENT TEST
8th grade students wanting to attend CR must take the
Placement test: Saturday, January 26th, 2019 8AM-12PM
Register your student by Thursday, January 24th, 2019
This test is free. You can register by calling 916-400-3478
DISCERNMENT DAY
Are you seeking for Truth? Are you yearning for the infinite and for happiness? Christ is the Answer! Come and See! The Dominican Nuns of Corpus Christi Monastery are hosting a Come and See Day for single, Catholic women ages 18-38 on January 19, 2019 at their monastery on 215 Oak Grove Avenue in Menlo Park, California. For those outside the San Francisco Bay Area, the nuns also have limited accommodations for overnight guests. For more information and to register visit www.opnunsmenlo.org/upcoming-events/ or contact Sister Joseph Marie O.P. at vocations@opnunsmenlo.org. The day begins with Mass at 8:00 a.m. followed by Divine Office, Rosary, Conferences on Discernment, Recreation with the nuns, Adoration and more! The event is free and all meals will be provided.
ROOTEDNESS
The flower does not bear the root. The root bears the flower. The rose is merely evidence of the vitality of the root.
—Woodrow Wilson