Saint Gregory the Great 3rd September 2015

Pope Saints, Patristic Reading

Gregory might well be writing the words, 
"The preacher must dip his pen into the blood 
of his heart; then he can also reach 
the ear of his neighbour."
(E. Lev)

SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT Saint Gregory the Great (+ 604) was one of the most important popes and influential writers of the Middle Ages.

MEDITATION OF THE  3RD, SEPTEMBER

   MAGNIFICAT com appreciated.

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'They followed him"

All of us have been called; all of us have come to the marriage feast of the heavenly King. We believe and confess the mystery of his Incarnation. We partake of the banquet of the divine Word. The King will come in on the coming day of judgement. We know we have been called; we do not know whether we have been chosen.

Each of us must disparage himself in humility in proportion to his ignorance of whether or not he has been chosen. Some start nothing good; some do not persist in the good they have begun. We see one person spending almost his entire life in wickedness, but toward its end his sorrow and strict repentance call him back from it. Another seems to be leading the life of a chosen one, yet it comes about that he turns aside toward its end to wicked error. One makes a good start and a better ending; another plunges into evil actions at an early age, and finishes in the same, always becoming worse. Everyone should be anxious and fearful for himself the more ignorant he is of what is in store for him, because-this must be said often and not forgotten-Many are called, but few are chosen.

The example of the faithful often transforms the hearts of listeners more than a teacher's words.

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

Through Christ the teacher, 0 Lord,
instruct those you feed with Christ, the living Bread,
that on the feast day of Saint Gregory
they may learn your truth
and express it in works of charity.
Through Christ our Lord .

 

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Tesday, 3 September 2013

Saint Gregory the Great, pope, 3 September 2013

St Gregory the Great
Carlo Saraceni (c. 1580-1620)

iBreviary

Tuesday, 3 September 2013

Tuesday of the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time

SECOND READING   

From a homily on Ezekiel by Saint Gregory the Great, pope
(Lib. 1, 11, 4-6: CCL 142, 170-172)

For Christ's love I do not spare myself in speaking of him

Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Note that a man whom the Lord sends forth as a preacher is called a watchman. A watchman always stands on a height so that he can see from afar what is coming. Anyone appointed to be a watchman for the people must stand on a height for all his life to help them by his foresight.

How hard it is for me to say this, for by these very words I denounce myself. I cannot preach with any competence, and yet insofar as I do succeed, still I myself do not live my life according to my own preaching.

I do not deny my responsibility; I recognize that I am slothful and negligent, but perhaps the acknowledgment of my fault will win me pardon from my just judge. Indeed when I was in the monastery I could curb my idle talk and usually be absorbed in my prayers. Since I assumed the burden of pastoral care, my mind can no longer be collected; it is concerned with so many matters.

I am forced to consider the affairs of the Church and of the monasteries. I must weigh the lives and acts of individuals. I am responsible for the concerns of our citizens. I must worry about the invasions of roving bands of barbarians, and beware of the wolves who lie in wait for my flock. I must become an administrator lest the religious go in want. I must put up with certain robbers without losing patience and at times I must deal with them in all charity.

With my mind divided and torn to pieces by so many problems, how can I meditate or preach wholeheartedly without neglecting the ministry of proclaiming the Gospel? Moreover, in my position I must often communicate with worldly men. At times I let my tongue run, for if I am always severe in my judgments, the worldly will avoid me, and I can never attack them as I would. As a result I often listen patiently to chatter. And because I too am weak, I find myself drawn little by little into idle conversation, and I begin to talk freely about matters which once I would have avoided. What once I found tedious I now enjoy.

So who am I to be a watchman, for I do not stand on the mountain of action but lie down in the valley of weakness? Truly the all-powerful Creator and Redeemer of mankind can give me in spite of my weaknesses a higher life and effective speech; because I love him, I do not spare myself in speaking of him.

  

Gregory might well be writing the words,
"The preacher must dip his pen into the blood
of his heart; then he can also reach
the ear of his neighbour."
(E. Lev)

   

RESPONSORY

He drew his moral and mystical teaching from the source of holy Scripture;
through him the life-giving streams of the Gospel flowed out to all nations.
– Though he is dead he still speaks to us today.

As a soaring eagle sees all on the earth below,
so he cares for both the great and small with his all-embracing charity.
– Though he is dead he still speaks to us today.