1/8 Saturday XVIIth OT
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I am the Lord your God! Leviticus 25,17
Our God who began revealing himself in the Old Testament and whom Jesus continued and continues to reveal, bears the seal of love and paternity; he asks us to share his compassion for all people and in so doing experience fullness of life. Thank you, Father; I discover you are "more beautiful" than I could ever have dreamed of!

2/8 Sunday XVIIIth OT
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I am the bread of life! John 6,34
An elderly woman came to our prayer meeting, but before it started she told us how hurt she was feeling because of the unkind behaviour of a dear one. That day the story of Jesus' meeting with Zachariah was explained: the woman felt Jesus' love and peace in her heart and returned home happy and reassured. Jesus, you are our true bread!

3/8 Monday XVIIIth OT
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They all ate and were satisfied. Matthew 14,20
Let us put everything in Jesus' hands today: even if they seem of little importance, let us offer all our efforts, our breath, our footsteps, our joys: it will be the joy of the Father, who, thanks to our "nothing", will have been able to satisfy hunger in the world with his divine gift.

4/8 Tuesday XVIIIth OT
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Save me, Lord! Matthew 14,30
Peter was sinking while walking on the water towards Jesus… When we make a decision, which is not very easy, but brings us closer to the heart of Jesus, we sometimes panic at the thought of losing our lives and become stuck on our path. "Save us, Lord!" Jesus can give us faith, strength and peace.

5/8 Wednesday XVIII OT
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I, the Lord, have spoken! Numbers 14,35
The people in the desert complained about the Lord: they did not trust him or his love or his power. This lack of trust saddened the Father's heart more than any other sin and he intervened with clarity and authority. Give us, Holy Spirit, a child's heart that always believes in the goodness and wisdom of the Father!

6/8 Thursday XVIIIth OT The Transfiguration of the Lord
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It is good that we are here! Mark 9,5
Every year we celebrate the Transfiguration of the Lord Jesus with great joy! The Father transfigured him on the mountain and three of his disciples contemplated him in his divine light: it is good for us to be here! Thank you, Father, for revealing to us every now and then, something wonderful about your beloved Son: these are small, great lights that stop us from forgetting him even in moments of crisis.

7/8 Friday XVIIIth OT
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He will give everyone his due reward. Matthew 16,27
The most important thing we can do is to believe, to be grateful and to respond to Jesus' offer of himself on the cross. Will I let myself be saved by Jesus? And then will I live with joy, following him and offering myself in turn?

8/8 Saturday XVIIIth OT
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What an unbelieving and perverse generation! Matthew 17,17
Thanks to the words of a brother or some fact of life we can hear the call of the Lord. I have experienced this several times; at first I suffered and was discouraged, but soon there was a little light in my heart: I experienced the strong, faithful love of the Father who was guiding me along his path with holiness and wisdom. I humbly thank him.

9/8 Sunday XIXth OT
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He who has come from God has seen the Father. John 6,46
Many prophets have been sent by God, but they were men from this world.
Only Jesus comes from God, from the glory he had with the Father before the world was created. Only he fully knows the Father and can reveal him. Only he, in offering himself can transmit the divine life that the Father wishes to communicate to a humanity caught in the power of death.

10/8 Monday XIXth OT St Laurence, Deacon and Martyr
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His benevolence lasts forever! II Corinthians 9,9
The Church reserves a particular honour for St Laurence who was a deacon of the Church of Rome. In serving the poor he used all the love and wisdom the Lord had given him to the point of offering his life in martyrdom. We honour "your benevolence" in trying to be like you, dear friend and allowing the Holy Spirit, the "Architect" of all Jesus' saints, to fill us.

11/8 Tuesday XIXth OT
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He called a child. Matthew 18,2
Jesus called a child in answer to the disciples' question: "Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?" When we no longer can or want to do something "great" in the kingdom of heaven, when we become "small" and leave space for his presence, for his plans, for his work, then we become precious in the eyes of the Lord.

12/8 Wednesday XIXth OT
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If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. Matthew 18,15
To help someone correct themselves takes courage and humility: courage which comes from wanting the best for them and humility that does not condemn and knows how to accept however they react… When, however, I criticise and condemn people inwardly, or worse, to others, then I am a coward and arrogant. I thank those who have had the courage to speak up against my pride in order to help me change.

13/8 Thursday XIXth OT
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Lord, be patient with me! Matthew 18,26
Thank you, Father, for always being patient with me; it is I who am not patient with others. Bearing in mind your goodness, I will try to forgive my colleague, my neighbour, my relative ……….

14/8 Friday XIXth OT
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What God has joined together, man must not separate. Matthew 19,6
These words contain a wisdom that empowers the sixth and ninth commandment! I really admire those couples who never dream of separating even when they do not understand each other and are feeling hurt. They know that their union is blessed by God and that outside of it there is no blessing. These words help the young prepare for their marriage with the effort to love and prove their faithfulness.

15/8 Saturday XIXth The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
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He has looked with favour at his servant, lowly though she is. Luke 1,48
We could also put it like this: he has seen the smallness of his servant. Holy Mary, you who are the most beautiful of the Lord's works, teach us, your beloved children, that nothing is more pleasing to the Father than the humility of his creatures: when they see how poor they are in front of him and they place their trust in him, he can illuminate in them the beauty of his love. Mary in heaven, sing hallelujah!

16/8 Sunday XXth OT
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Whoever eats me will live because of me! John 6,57
If, as soon as I wake up, my heart turns to Jesus, to his love, to his presence and continues to do so during the day, he "nourishes" me; if I hold his words in my heart and try to behave as he would, my spiritual life will be well nourished and will stand upright and give light and vigour to my being. Jesus, true bread of our lives!

17/8 Monday XXth OT
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Come and follow me! Matthew 19,21
Lord Jesus, when you look with favour at one of your children, you call them to leave everything and follow you; I can humbly say, however, that for those who follow you, you are more than a bride or a bridegroom, you bring more joy than a nice house, friends or parties, you give more reassurance than a father's arms, more love than a mother's kisses… Thank you, Jesus! I was and am nothing, but you chose me for yourself!

18/8 Tuesday XXth OT
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Everything is possible for God! Matthew 19,26
Thank goodness! How else could I follow Jesus when the seduction of entertainments, of money, of success and the ways of the world draw me like a magnet? How could I remain faithful when my feelings go in the wrong direction? How could I not be resentful and how could I forgive those who cause me great problems? Everything is possible for God! Thank goodness, Lord, please help me!

19/8 Wednesday XXth OT
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Listen to me and may God listen to you! Judges 9,7
These words are spoken to the people of Israel on behalf of God. It is true: when we listen to those who Jesus sends us in his name, we too, can experience peace in our hearts just as those who have the friendship and the protection of the best of fathers, the greatest of Kings.

20/8 Thursday XXth OT
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The wedding banquet is ready! Matthew 22,8
This sounds like the joyful voice of the Father who says to each one of us: "the eternal banquet is ready for you, that is, a full life in communion with me and my Son: it is he who obtained this gift for you when he died on the cross because of his love for you. Receive him without fear and with great love!

21/8 Friday XXth OT
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Your God will be my God! Ruth 1,16
To accept a person's habits, ideas and plans is a sign of love and trust. It is what married couples do in living together. To accept and conform to another's faith is a much more serious matter. Ruth did it! She left the idols of the Moabite people and chose Naomi's God, the God of Israel who sent the Saviour Jesus. By the precious blood of Jesus may no-one convert away from Christianity.

22/8 Saturday XXth OT
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Do not follow their practice! Matthew 23,2
So I cannot justify myself by saying "everybody does it" or "even priests …". It's true that example is more convincing than words, but when that example does not conform to the Word of God, it is the latter that I must hold firm to for it is a lighthouse in the darkness of this world.

23/8 Sunday XXIth OT
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For Jesus knew who was to betray him. John 6,64
Sometimes I know when a meeting or a service that I am about to undertake will cause problems. For me this is a light, a gift of the Lord: I commend myself even more into his hands and ask for his help; I have experienced my weakness in the face of difficulty: I have seen that he alone is the strength behind my faith.

24/8 Monday XXIth OT St Bartholomew, the Apostle
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You will see greater things than that! John 1,50
On hearing the simple words Jesus spoke at their first meeting, Bartholomew felt loved and understood in a wonderful way. Jesus promised "greater things". As his follower, he was to know Jesus as he to whom the angels administered, as he who brings us the Father's word and represents our humanity to the Father.

25/8 Tuesday XXIth TO
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We seek only the favour of God …. not men. I Thessalonians 2,4
Sometimes, in order not to displease people, we are unable to testify for Jesus: we keep his wisdom and his light hidden. This is not loving our neighbour. Come, Holy Spirit, into our hearts! Make us seek only to please the Father, so that we can be a true gift also for our brothers!

26/8 Wednesday XXIth OT
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We call you to witness! I Thessalonians 2,10
The Christians of Thessalonica, among whom St Paul had ministered, were witnesses to the faith, the wisdom and untiring effort with which the apostle had worked. Thank you, Lord Jesus, that I too may witness the holy service of many brothers and sisters. I not only admire them, but can also imitate them with joy!

27/8 Thursday XXIth OT
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The son of man comes! Matthew 24,39
For sure we will, one day meet Jesus in a way… that will overcome all our dreams. We need not be afraid, however, for he is the Son of God who for our sake became man. For this very reason we wish to receive him in a way that is worthy and ask the Father to "make our hearts strong and irreprehensible in holiness".

28/8 Friday XXIth OT
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Each one of you must learn …to hallow and honour his body. I Thessalonians 4,4
We thank the Lord for his pleasure in seeing his children respect their bodies: they are dwelling places of the Holy Spirit. Thank you, good Father, for my hands, for my eyes, for my lips, for my feet: with them I can carry out the work of your love, with them I will forever be with you in heaven!

29/8 Saturday XXIth OT The Martyrdom of John the Baptist
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I shall be with you to keep you safe. Jeremiah 1,19
This reassurance of God to Jeremiah seems evangelical: in fact Jesus told us and showed us how God is a Father who always and only loves us. Not even sin can keep us away from him if we receive Jesus, the Saviour whom he sent us.

30/8 Sunday XXIIth OT
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Listen to me all of you and understand. Mark 7,14
"Listen Israel", the Lord speaks to his people. "Listen to me all of you". It is you, Jesus, who speaks to everybody; you speak like God, you are God! The authority, the love, the divine signs that you accomplished, the witness that the Father made for you, they are the proof. May I also, fully trust your word, for it gives me new freedom and holy, true, joyful love!

31/8 Monday XXIIth OT
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The whole congregation was roused to fury! Luke 4,28
The word of God had just presented Jesus at Nazareth: the Father has laid his seal, the Holy Spirit, upon him. This takes place in the synagogue of his town: after the first reaction of joy, the people are roused to fury: Jesus was not able to praise them for he had not found humility of faith in them. Jesus, may we always be with you, in all humility!

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