Monday of the Seventeenth week in Ordinary Time

Book of Exodus

Moses then turned and came down the mountain with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands, tablets that were written on both sides, front and back;
tablets that were made by God, having inscriptions on them that were engraved by God himself.
Now, when Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, "That sounds like a battle in the camp."
But Moses answered, "It does not sound like cries of victory, nor does it sound like cries of defeat; the sounds that I hear are cries of revelry."
As he drew near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing. With that, Moses' wrath flared up, so that he threw the tablets down and broke them on the base of the mountain.
Taking the calf they had made, he fused it in the fire and then ground it down to powder, which he scattered on the water and made the Israelites drink.
Moses asked Aaron, "What did this people ever do to you that you should lead them into so grave a sin?" Aaron replied, "Let not my lord be angry.
You know well enough how prone the people are to evil.
They said to me, 'Make us a god to be our leader; as for the man Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.'
So I told them, 'Let anyone who has gold jewelry take it off.' They gave it to me, and I threw it into the fire, and this calf came out."
On the next day Moses said to the people, "You have committed a grave sin. I will go up to the LORD, then; perhaps I may be able to make atonement for your sin."
So Moses went back to the LORD and said, "Ah, this people has indeed committed a grave sin in making a god of gold for themselves!
If you would only forgive their sin! If you will not, then strike me out of the book that you have written."
The LORD answered, "Him only who has sinned against me will I strike out of my book.
Now, go and lead the people whither I have told you. My angel will go before you. When it is time for me to punish, I will punish them for their sin."

Psalms

Our fathers made a calf in Horeb
and adored a molten image;
They exchanged their glory
for the image of a grass-eating bullock.
They forgot the God who had saved them,
who had done great deeds in Egypt,
Wondrous deeds in the land of Ham,
terrible things at the Red Sea.
Then he spoke of exterminating them,
but Moses, his chosen one,
withstood him in the breach
to turn back his destructive wrath.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew

Jesus proposed a parable to the crowds. "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field.
It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the 'birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'"
He spoke to them another parable. "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened."
All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet: "I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world."

St. Pedro Poveda Castroverde(Priest and Martyr (1874-1936))

Saint Pedro Poveda CastroverdePriest and Martyr, Founder of the Teresian Association(1874-1936) Pedro Poveda was born on December 3, 1874, in Linares, Spain. From early childhood, he felt called to become a priest; and in 1889, he entered the diocesan seminary in Jaén. Because of financial difficulties, he transferred to the Diocese of Guadix in Grenada where the bishop had offered him a scholarship. He was ordained a priest on April 17, 1897. After ordination, Fr. Poveda taught in the seminary and served the diocese. In 1900, he completed a licentiate in theology in Seville and later began an apostolate among the "cave-dwellers," those who lived in dugouts in the hills outside of Guadix. There, he built a school for children and workshops for adults to provide professional training and Christian formation. He was misunderstood, however, and had to leave this special ministry. Fr. Poveda headed for the solitude of Covadonga in the mountains of northern Spain. In 1906, he was appointed canon of the Basilica of Covadonga in Asturias, where the Blessed Virgin is venerated. He spent much time reflecting on the problems in Spain's education system. He understood that the Lord was inviting him to open new paths in the Church and in the society of his time. He began publishing articles and pamphlets on the question of the professional formation of teachers and was also in contact with others who wanted to take action. One barrier to educational reform was the education system's alienation of God. Fr. Poveda's apostolic experiences and years of reflection helped him identify a need for the Christian formation of teachers in the State's school system. He believed that both solid faith and professional qualifications were needed to transmit the Gospel. In 1911, Fr. Poveda opened the St. Teresa of Avila Academy as a residence for students and the starting point of the Teresian Association. The Association's mission was forming the spiritual foundation and pastoral ability of teachers. The following year, he joined the Apostolic Union of Secular Priests and started new pedagogical centers and some periodicals. To further his work, Fr. Poveda moved to Jaén, where he taught in the seminary, served as spiritual director of Los Operarios Catechetical Centre, and worked at the Teacher Training College. In 1914, he opened Spain's first university residence for women in Madrid. Meanwhile, the Teresian Association developed and spread to various groups and areas. Soon, it gained ecclesiastical and civil approval in Jaén. Fr. Poveda offered the Teresian Association as a new path of Christian life and evangelization, created with and for lay persons. Its members were formed as Gospel witnesses according to the expression: "To believe firmly and to keep silent is not possible." He wanted the adherents to be ready to give their lives for the faith and expressed the same desire himself. In 1921, Fr. Poveda moved to Madrid and was appointed chaplain of the Royal Palace. A year later, he was appointed as a member of the Central Board Against Illiteracy, but most of his time was devoted to the Teresian Association, which received papal approval in 1924. He did not direct the Association, but as its founder worked to consolidate and promote the various dimensions of its mission as it spread to Chile and later to Italy in 1934. It was during the religious persecution in Spain that Fr. Poveda would be called to martyrdom. At dawn on July 28, 1936, when told by his persecutors to identify himself, he said, "I am a priest of Christ." He was martyred soon after. He was beatified on October 10, 1993, and was canonized on May 3, 2003, by Pope John Paul II.

St. Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception(Religious (1910-1946))

Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception (1910-1946) Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception was born on August 19 in Kudamalur, the Arpookara region, in the diocese of Changanacherry, India. She was from the ancient and noble family of Muttathupadathu. From her birth, Alphonsa's life was marked by the cross. Her mother, Maria Puthukari, gave birth during the eighth month of pregnancy after a snake wrapped itself around her waist while she was sleeping. Eight days later, on August 28, Alphonsa was baptized by Fr. Joseph Chackalayil according to the Syro-Malabar rite. She was named Annakutty, a diminutive of Anne. Annakutty's mother passed away three months after childbirth, so she was raised by her grandparents in Elumparambil. Her grandmother, a pious and charitable woman, communicated the joy of the faith, love for prayer, and charity toward the poor. At 5 years old, Annakutty already knew how to lead the family's evening prayer in accordance with the Syro-Malabar custom, which was held in the prayer room. Annakutty received the Eucharistic bread for the first time on November 11, 1917. She used to say to her friends: "Do you know why I am so particularly happy today? It is because I have Jesus in my heart!" In a letter to her spiritual father, on November 30, 1943, she confided the following: "Already from the age of seven I was no longer mine. I was totally dedicated to my divine Spouse. Your reverence knows it well." In 1917, Annakutty began attending the elementary school of Thonnankuzhy. She established sincere friendships with the Hindu children. In 1920, she moved to her aunt Anna Murickal's house in Muttuchira, who her mother had entrusted her to. Her aunt was severe and demanding, and at times despotic and violent. Her aunt was assiduous in religious practices, but did not share the friendship with the Carmelites of the close-by Monastery or the long periods of prayer at the foot of the altar. Annakutty's aunt was determined to procure an advantageous marriage for her. Annakutty's virtue was manifested in accepting her aunt's severe and rigid education as a path of humility and patience for the love of Christ. She also resisted continual arranged marriage attempts that were pushed upon her. To get out of one, Annakutty burned herself by putting her foot into a heap of embers. "My marriage was arranged when I was thirteen years old. What had I to do to avoid it? I prayed all that night... then an idea came to me. If my body were a little disfigured no one would want me! ... O, how I suffered! I offered all for my great intention." Annakutty's attempt to disfigure herself did not fully succeed in freeing her from the attentions of suitors. In the following years, she had to defend her religious vocation: even during the year of probation, when an attempt to give her in marriage was made with the Mistress of Formation's compliance. She wrote, "O, the vocation which I received! A gift of my good God! ... God saw the pain of my soul in those days. God distanced the difficulties and established me in this religious state." It was Fr. James Muricken, Annakutty's confessor, who directed her toward Franciscan spirituality and put her in contact with the Congregation of the Franciscan Clarists. Annakutty entered their college in Bharananganam on May 24, 1927, and attended seventh class as an intern student. On August 2, 1928, she began her postulancy and took the name of Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception in honor of St. Alphonsus Liguori. She was clothed in the religious habit on May 19, 1930, during the first pastoral visit made to Bharananganam by the bishop, Msgr. James Kalacherry. Alphonsa's life from 1930 to 1935 was characterized by grave illness and moral suffering. She could only teach children at the school in Vakakkad in 1932. Due to physical weakness, she carried out the duties of assistant-teacher and catechist at the parish. She also worked as a secretary, especially to write official letters because of her beautiful script. When the canonical novitiate was introduced into the Congregation of the Franciscan Clarists in 1934, Alphonsa wished to enter immediately. However, she was only admitted in 1935 because of ill-health. About one week after the beginning of her novitiate, she had a hemorrhage from the nose and eyes and a profound organic wasting and purulent wounds on her legs. The illness escalated to the point that her life was in danger. She was miraculously cured during a novena to The Servant of God Fr. Kuriakose Elia Chavara, a Carmelite who is today a Blessed. Having restarted her novitiate, she wrote the following proposals in her spiritual diary: "I do not wish to act or speak according to my inclinations. Every time I fail, I will do penance... I want to be careful never to reject anyone. I will only speak sweet words to others. I want to control my eyes with rigor. I will ask pardon of the Lord for every little failure and I will atone for it through penance. No matter what my sufferings may be, I will never complain and if I have to undergo any humiliation, I will seek refuge in the Sacred Heart of Jesus." On August 12, 1936, the feast of St. Clare, Alphonsa joyfully made her perpetual profession. She had realized her heart's desire - guarded for a long time and confided to her sister Elizabeth when she was 12 years old: "Jesus is my only Spouse, and no other." God led Sr. Alphonsa to perfection through a life of suffering. She wrote, "I made my perpetual profession on the 12th of August 1936 and came here to Bharanganam on the following 14th. From that time, it seems, I was entrusted with a part of the cross of Christ. There are abundant occasions of suffering... I have a great desire to suffer with joy. It seems that my Spouse wishes to fulfill this desire." Painful illnesses followed one after another: typhoid fever, double pneumonia, and, the most serious of all, a dramatic nervous shock, the result of a fright on seeing a thief during the night of October 18, 1940. Her state of psychic incapacity lasted for about a year, during which she was unable to read or write. In every situation, Sr. Alphonsa always maintained recollectedness and a charitable attitude toward the Sisters. In 1945, she had a violent outbreak of illness. A tumor, which had spread throughout her organs, transformed her final year of life into a continuous agony. Gastroenteritis and liver problems caused violent convulsions and vomiting up to forty times a day. She wrote, "I feel that the Lord has destined me to be an oblation, a sacrifice of suffering... I consider a day in which I have not suffered as a day lost today." With her attitude of a victim for the love of Jesus, happy until her final moments and with a smile of gratitude always on her lips, Sr. Alphonsa quietly and joyfully brought her earthly journey to a close at the convent of the Franciscan Clarists in Bharananganam, at 12:30 on July 28, 1946. She left behind the memory of a Sister full of love and a saint. Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception Muttathupadathu was proclaimed Blessed by Pope John Paul II in Kottayam, India, on February 8, 1986. She was canonized on October 12, 2008, by Pope Benedict XVI. With that canonization, the Church in India presents its first saint to the veneration of the faithful of the whole world. The faithful thank God for St. Alphonsa who is united with Christ and who harmonized the Roman and Malabar traditions.

St. Victor(Pope and Martyr († 198))

Saint Victor IPope and Martyr( 198) St. Victor governed the Church during the reign of Emperor Severus. He confuted Theodotus Coriarius and guided Christian thought on the question of Easter. After being martyred, he was buried on the fifth day before the Calends of August, at what is today Vatican Hill.

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