Sunday 11 June
10th Sunday in Ordinary Time First reading - Hosea 6:3-6 “Let us set ourselves to know the Lord”. This is very beautiful. The prophet Hosea is asking to make a foundation for our life. We have to prepare ourselves with a disposition to know the Lord. A disposition by which we can know who the Lord is. This disposition is not for any other motive or selfish interest but to know who the Lord is. The Lord is going to come like as the dawn. He will rise like the light. And we should be prepared to welcome him. More than that, to know Him. We need a real opening of our hearts to know him. It is not enough our love like a morning cloud that disappears. And the Prophet speaks exactly how we must have the disposition to know the Lord. “What I want is love, not sacrifice; knowledge of God, not holocausts”. It’s the not the sacrifices without love that is needed but it is the love that’s needed. When the Lord says, “what I want is knowledge of God, not holocausts”, it is for us to remember that the knowledge of God is greater than holocausts. Let’s reflect: Are my sacrifices devoid of selfless love?
Mother of God we call to you
Every year in May we go on pilgrimage with our home residents to venerate Mary in a special way. This time we visited the pilgrimage church Maria Magdalena a small church very close to Cochem with the "miraculous Mother of the Mountain" on the Valwigerberg. Through a church known as "image of the miraculous mother of the mountain". Our Lady statue, which was created around 1400 from softwood, which was made of soft wood around 1400, a lively pilgrimage business developed on the Valwigerberg. In the past, up to 2,000 pilgrims came daily on Marian feasts. Even today, several pilgrimages take place on a smaller scale. Yes, our residents always look forward very much to the pilgrimage. Of course, everyone gathered in front of our house very punctually for the departure. The oldest pilgrim who took part is 100 years old and a Protestant - but she didn't let that stop her. We presented all our intentions to Our Lady and, of course, sang the beautiful old Silesian Marian songs. After the pilgrimage and coffee we went back home with happy residents. One of the residents said: "Hopefully we will all be alive next year so that we can visit Our Lady on Valwigerberg again. Sister M. Felicitas
Saturday 10 June
Saturday of week 9 in Ordinary Time First reading - Tobit 12:1,5-15,20 This is a beautiful passage where we can find the importance of praising God and doing good is beautifully stated. Thanking God and helping the needy are equally important. Faith in God must be equally expressed in words and in deeds. Regarding thanking God, we read, “Proclaim before all men the deeds of God as they deserve, and never tire of giving him thanks”, again, “Thank him worthily. Do what is good”. We must give thanks to God in a worthy manner, and we must never get tired of giving thanks. What is the worthful manner of giving thanks to God? It is by doing what is good. We can see the complementarity of prayer and good works in this reading. “So you must know that when you and Sarah were at prayer, it was I who offered your supplications before the glory of the Lord and who read them; so too when you were burying the dead”. We must complement our prayers with our good works, our thanksgiving to God with our alms giving, and our praising of God with helping the needy. Let’s reflect: Do I complement my prayers with doing what is good?