Thursday of the Thirty-second week in Ordinary Time

Book of Wisdom

In Wisdom is a spirit intelligent, holy, unique, Manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unstained, certain, Not baneful, loving the good, keen, unhampered, beneficent,
kindly, Firm, secure, tranquil, all-powerful, all-seeing, And pervading all spirits, though they be intelligent, pure and very subtle.
For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion, and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity.
For she is an aura of the might of God and a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nought that is sullied enters into her.
For she is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God, the image of his goodness.
And she, who is one, can do all things, and renews everything while herself perduring; And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God and prophets.
For there is nought God loves, be it not one who dwells with Wisdom.
For she is fairer than the sun and surpasses every constellation of the stars. Compared to light, she takes precedence;
for that, indeed, night supplants, but wickedness prevails not over Wisdom.
Indeed, she reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well.

Psalms

Your word, O LORD, endures forever;
it is firm as the heavens.
Through all generations your truth endures;
you have established the earth, and it stands firm.
According to your ordinances they still stand firm:
all things serve you.
The revelation of your words sheds light,
giving understanding to the simple.
Let your countenance shine upon your servant,
and teach me your statutes.
Let my soul live to praise you,
and may your ordinances help me.

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke

Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed,
and no one will announce, 'Look, here it is,' or, 'There it is.' For behold, the kingdom of God is among you."
Then he said to his disciples, "The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.
There will be those who will say to you, 'Look, there he is,' (or) 'Look, here he is.' Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.
For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be (in his day).
But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation."

St. Frances Xavier Cabrini((1850-1917))

SAINT FRANCES XAVIER CABRINI Virgin and Foundress (1850-1917) Frances Cabrini was born and baptized on July 15, 1850, in Sant'Angelo Lodigiano, northern Italy. Her pious family gave her human and supernatural virtues. The Lord led her to the heights of sanctity as a religious and foundress. The turning point in Frances' life was entering the House of Providence in Codogno. She received the religious habit, and while keeping the name Frances, later added Xavier to it in memory of the great Jesuit missionary and patron of the missions. Thanks to Bp. Domenico Maria Gelmini's support, Sr. Frances Xavier left the House of Providence with seven companions and founded the Salesian Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, which received diocesan approval in 1881. Mother Cabrini asked her sisters for evangelical obedience, mortification, renunciation, vigilance of the heart and interior silence as necessary virtues for conforming to Christ. Vocations surprisingly blossomed and the institute rapidly expanded in Lombardy and beyond. The first house was opened in Rome. Papal approval of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus came on March 12, 1888, scarcely 8 years after its foundation. Pope Leo XIII asked Mother Cabrini to care for poor Italian immigrants. She longed to go to China, but the pope's words, "Not to the East, but to the West" gave her new energy and direction. The invitation of Christ's vicar directed Mother Cabrini toward immigrants who often crossed to the United States in extreme poverty. Mother Cabrini's tireless apostolic work was more and more inspired by her desire to bring salvation to all. She used to say, "The Heart of Jesus does things in such a hurry that I can barely keep up with Him." With a group of sisters, she left for New York on the first of many voyages. As a messenger of hope, she achieved ever new goals in her tireless apostolate: Nicaragua, Brazil and Argentina, in addition to France, Spain and England. Armed with remarkable boldness, Mother Cabrini started schools, hospitals and orphanages for the masses of immigrants. Not knowing the language and lacking the wherewithal to find a respectable place in American society, they were often victimized. Mother Cabrini reached out to them everywhere: in hovels, prisons and mines. She was never intimidated by toil or distance and traveled from New York to New Jersey, from Pennsylvania to Illinois, from California to Louisiana and Colorado. Even today, she is still called Mother Cabrini in the United States. Mother Cabrini was beatified just 21 years after her death in Chicago on December 22, 1917. In 1946, she was canonized by Pope Pius XII. In the Holy Year of 1950, he proclaimed her the patroness of immigrants.

St. Agostina Livia Pietrantoni((1864-1894))

Saint Agostina Livia Pietrantoni (1864-1894) Virgin Congregation of the Sisters of the Charity of Saint Jeanne-Antide Thouret Once there was, and still is, but with a new face now, a village named Pozzaglia in the Sabina hills. There in a blessed house, a cosy nest filled with childrens' voices, lived Olivia, who later was called Livia and took the name Agostina in religious life. Her life, although short, was remarkable and inspired Pope Paul VI to call her, "simple, transparent, pure, loving..." Livia was born and baptized on March 27, 1864, in the little village of Pozzaglia Sabina, at an altitude of 800 meters, in a beautiful area bordered by Rieti, Orvinio and Tivoli. She was the second of eleven children. Her parents, Francesco Pietrantoni and Caterina Costantini, were farmers and worked their small plot of land along with a few added plots that they leased. Livia's childhood and youth were imbued with the values of an honest, hard-working and religious family, in a blessed house where "all were careful to do good and where they often prayed." Around 1876, Livia received her first Holy Communion with extraordinary awareness of God's substance and presence in the Eucharist. Very early on, in her large family, where everyone seemed to be a beneficiary to her time and help, she learned from her mother, Caterina, the thoughtfulness and maternal gestures that she showed with such gentleness towards her many younger brothers and sisters. She worked in the fields and looked after the animals before games or school, but was so remarkable that she earned the title of "teacher" from her classmates.Work and pride At the age of 7, along with other children, Livia began transporting sacks of stone and sand by the thousands for the road from Orvinio to Poggio Moiano. At the age of 12, she left with other young seasonal workers to harvest olives in Tivoli. She was precociously wise and took on the moral and religious responsibility for her young companions. She supported them in this tough work far from their families and proudly and courageously stood up to arrogant and unscrupulous bosses.Vocation and detachment Livia's wisdom, respect for others, generosity and beauty motivated her mother to find a suitable match. However, Livia chose a religious vocation instead of marriage. To those in the village who attempted to dissuade her, she replied, "I wish to choose a Congregation in which there is work both day and night." Everyone was certain that these words were genuine. A first trip to Rome in the company of her uncle, Fra Matteo, ended in bitter disillusionment: they refused to accept her. A few months later, however, the mother general of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Jeanne-Antide Thouret told Livia that she was expecting her at the generalate. Livia understood that this time she was saying farewell forever. With emotion, she took leave of the village people, all the loved corners of her land, her favorite prayer places, the parish and the Virgin of Rifolta. She kissed her parents goodbye, received Uncle Domenico's blessing, "kissed the door of her house, traced the sign of the cross on it and left hurriedly..."Formation and mission Livia was 22 years old when she arrived in Rome on March 23, 1886, at Via S. Maria in Cosmedin. A few months as a postulant and novice proved that she had the makings of a Sister of Charity, that is, of a "servant of the poor," in the tradition of Saint Vincent de Paul and Saint Jeanne-Antide. Thanks to her family, she had a particularly solid spiritual foundation. When she received the religious habit and was given the name Sister Agostina, she had the premonition that it fell to her to become the saint bearing this name. Sister Agostina was sent to the Hospital of Santo Spirito. Seven hundred years of glorious history had led it to be called "the school of Christian charity." In the wake of the saints who preceded her, amongst whom were Charles Borromeo, Joseph Casalanz, John Bosco and Camillus de Lellis, Sister Agostina made her personal contribution. In this place where many suffered, she expressed heroic charity.Silence, prayer and goodness The hospital's atmosphere was hostile to religion because of the Roman question. The Capuchin fathers had been expelled and the Crucifix and all other religious signs were prohibited. The hospital administrators only kept the sisters because they feared becoming unpopular. Hence, the sisters' lives were made impossible and they were forbidden to speak about God. Sister Agostina did not need to "cry out for God," but through her life proclaimed the Gospel. First, in the childrens' ward, and later in the tuberculosis ward: a place of despair and death, where she caught the mortal contagion of which she was miraculously healed. She showed total dedication and concern for each sick person, above all for the most difficult, violent and obscene. In secret, in a small hidden corner of the hospital, Sister Agostina commended everyone to the Holy Virgin and promised Our Lady more vigils and greater sacrifices for their conversion. How many times she offered Joseph Romanelli to Our Lady! He was vulgar and insolent toward her while she was attentive toward him and welcomed his blind mother with great kindness during visits. When, after the umpteenth provocation at the expense of the women working in the laundry, the Director expelled Joseph Romanelli from the hospital, the latter sought a target for his fury, and poor Agostina was the victim. Several times, Romanelli sent Sister Agostina death threats scrawled on little notes. When he caught her unaware and struck her to death on November 13, 1894, her lips uttered nothing but invocations to the Holy Virgin Mary and words of forgiveness.

St. Stanislaus Kostka((1551-1568))

SAINT STANISLAUS KOSTKA (1551-1568) St. Stanislaus was from a noble Polish family. At 14 years old, he went with his elder brother, Paul, to the Jesuits' College in Vienna. Stanislaus' austerities were felt as a reproach by Paul, who maltreated him. The abuse and penances brought on a dangerous illness, but Stanislaus could not send for a priest since he was at a Lutheran house. He remembered that his patroness, St. Barbara, never permitted her devotees to die without the Holy Viaticum, so he devoutly appealed to her. She appeared with two angels and gave him the Sacred Host. When Stanislaus was cured, Our Lady bid him enter the Society of Jesus. Stanislaus avoided opposition by departing Vienna. At the Jesuit house, Stanislaus cheerfully performed the most menial tasks. He was then admitted to the Jesuit novitiate in Rome. There, he lived for ten short months: demonstrating rare piety, obedience and devotion. Stanislaus passed away, as he had prayed, on the Feast of the Assumption in 1568, at the age of 17. God brought his soul to Heaven because he gave his life for Jesus' sake (Mt. 16:25). Let us follow his example and never be lukewarm in piety.

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