Today, October 17
Feast of the Day
No feast of the day
Saint of the Day
Very little is known about the early life of Ignatius. He is believed to have been a convert to Christianity and a disciple of John the Evangelist. Bishop of Antioch for 40 years, he was arrested during the persecution under Trajan, condemned for confessing Christ and taken in chains to Rome. The ship in which he was sent travelled along the coast of Asia Minor and at every port crowds of Christians would greet him. While on this journey, Ignatius dictated seven letters on Church matters which are counted among the treasures of early Christianity. Ignatius arrived in Rome about the year 107 and was taken directly to the amphitheatre where lions devoured him.
©2011 Living with Christ, Novalis - Bayard Press Canada Inc., http://www.livingwithchrist.ca/. Reprinted with permission.
Readings of the Day
Letter to the Ephesians 1,15-23.
Brothers and sisters, hearing of your faith in the Lord Jesus and of your love for all the holy ones, do not cease giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation resulting in knowledge of him. May the eyes of (your) hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call, what are the riches of glory in his inheritance among the holy ones, and what is the surpassing greatness of his power for us who believe, in accord with the exercise of his great might, which he worked in Christ, raising him from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavens, far above every principality, authority, power, and dominion, and every name that is named not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things beneath his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.
Psalms 8,2-3ab.4-5.6-7.
O LORD, our LORD, How glorious is your name over all the earth! You have exalted your majesty above the heavens. Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings You have fashioned praise because of your foes. When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers, The moon and the stars which you set in place? What is man that you should be mindful of him, or the son of man that you should care for him? You have made him little less than the angels, and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of your hands, putting all things under his feet.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 12,8-12.
Jesus said to his disciples: "I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God. But whoever denies me before others will be denied before the angels of God. Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the holy Spirit will not be forgiven. When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities, do not worry about how or what your defense will be or about what you are to say. For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say."
Daily Reflection
Arm yourself with that patience which works such wonders in the saints. (…) Let us reflect, and we shall see that the sufferings of this life are out of all proportion to the magnitude of Christ’s sufferings, the gravity of our sins, the horror of the torments of hell, and the heavenly reward. Thus, our Fathers rejoiced in the days of humiliation and the years of trial that the Lord ordained for them. (…) Patience is a diamond: through it, the soul withstands all adversity; a remedy: it heals every wound; a shield: it protects against every attack. No one can ever harm us if we have begun to wage an interior battle against ourselves. (…) In the construction of a building, the stone destined for a place of honor is struck, hewn, and carved. So it is with us: we are pressed and shaped in this world so that we may enter the heavenly temple, where the sound of the hammer is heard no more. Joy must come only after the sorrow made necessary for the atonement of our past faults, for our spiritual perfection, and for the increase of our eternal glory. O fruitful labor, O precious pain, O blessed tears that the Almighty Himself shall wipe from the eyes of His tried and tested elect! Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs especially to those who suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness (Mt 5:10).