Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church.
Be who God meant you to be and you will set
the world on fire.”-St. Catherine of Siena.
Acts 9:31-42
John 6:60-69
The conversion of Saul (Paul) brought great relief to the early Christians. There are now at liberty to preach. They began to expand further and further far beyond Jerusalem. Not far from Jerusalem is a town called Lydda. By this time, the church had already been established in Joppa. An outstanding disciple of this Christian community was a woman named Tabitha. (Dorcas in Greek). She was known for her devotion to Jesus and dedication to charitable works. She became ill and died. The Church honored her with a wake keep and laid her in the upper room.
When the church members in Joppa heard that Peter was nearby, in Lydda, two men were sent there to urge him to come back with them to Joppa. Getting to the Upper room where she was laid, Peter knelt to pray and then he turned to Dorcas and said, “Tabitha, get up.” And then she came back alive. Peter would then continues his journey to preach Christ and cure people of their sicknesses.
Now also, we have come to the end of our reading of the sixth chapter of the holy gospel according to St. John and we immediately see that many who have been listening to Christ are unable to accept all what He has been saying since about Himself being the bread of life, and many decided to stop following Him. So He turned to His Apostles and asked them what they think about the matter, Peter replies that there is nobody else to go to for He is the one who has the message of eternal life. This is the faith that we are called to profess.
Today the Church celebrates the feast day of one of the four women who are Doctors of the Church, Catherine of Siena. Her influence on Pope Gregory XI to return to Rome from Avignon, France was Divine intervention only because she listened to God with deep love and was open to the Holy Spirit.
As Christians, fellow disciples of Christ, we too are called to use our God-given talents to help ease pain and suffering and be joy, peace, and light to others. In the Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples that the words that he has spoken to them are “Spirit and life”.
Do you believe that Jesus’ Word offers you eternal life? Do you have difficulties accepting the Truth of the Body and Blood of Christ? Do you believe that God can inspire you to change and enrich people’s lives?
May the good Lord continue to bestow us with His exceeding graces and favor; and may what is dead within us be raised to new life in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Fr Joseph Osho
