SCHOLASTICA, Virgin, Religious

February 10, 2023 

SCHOLASTICA, Virgin, Religious 

Introduction

Not much is known about St Scholastica, the sister of the great St. Benedict, in whose shadow she lived. Dedicating her virginity to God, she first lived a life of prayer at home, then stayed near her brother at Subiaco, then Monte Cassino, until Benedict put her in charge of a community of women.

We know from history how Benedictine monasteries of men and women not only radiated peace, but were in many regions the civilizers and the main witnesses to Christ’s presence in the world.

Opening Prayer

God our Father,
we thank you for saints
like St. Scholastica;
they remind us that a life
of prayer and community
bears witness to your presence in this world.
Make us too see clearly
that it is ultimately you who count
and you who are the meaning of our lives
and that the bond that unites us
with people anywhere
is Jesus Christ our Lord.

Intentions

–   For the Church, that we may not only love the poor and care for them, but also protest with courage when they are trampled upon, we pray:

–   For educators in the faith – priests, sisters, catechists, teachers – that they themselves may listen to God’s word, and then pass it on with conviction and love, we pray:

–   For those who are deaf and blind to other people and to their love and needs, that their eyes and hearts may be opened to the treasures of love and sharing, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

God our Father,
by the signs of food and drink
your Son Jesus gives himself to us
and gathers us together as a community
of love and service.
Make the communities
of religious men and women
a sign for all to see
that you want us to be one
as the people you have liberated
and bound to you in a covenant
through the death and risen life
of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

God our Father,
we give you thanks for this eucharist
and for all the good done
in the Church and for the world
by religious men and women.
Let them be living witnesses
that the gospel is worth living for.
Through the body and blood of your Son
strengthen them to be to everyone
worshippers in spirit and in truth
who, on account of you,
are concerned about people
with Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing

Jesus has been with us in this Eucharistic celebration to bring us out of our isolation and to open us, in respect and love, to God and to our neighbor, that is, to all. Like Jesus, may we become available particularly to the poorest among us and let them feel that, with God, we too care. May Almighty God give you this openness and bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Reflection:

10 February 2023

Mark 7: 31-37

“Ephphatha!”

Today the Church celebrates the memorial of St Scholastica, the sister of the great St. Benedict, in whose shadow she lived. Dedicating her life to God, she first lived a life of prayer at home, then stayed near her brother at Subiaco, then Monte Cassino until Benedict put her in charge of a community of women.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is presented as a physician who heals the deaf and mute person.

This deaf and mute man is a figure of humanity in general, precisely because being deaf by not listening to the sounds, not listening to the words, he does not learn to make sounds and words, and the person becomes dumb. It is the condition of humanity that is deaf to the Word of God; it is their inability to understand, comprehend, to accept the Word. Humanity is unable to communicate the voice of God.

“Ephphatha!” that word that Jesus said imperatively: “Open up.” We have a closed man, and Jesus gives him the order: “Open up.”

He orders this man, closed on himself, to open up. His ears open, and the knot of the tongue is untied. It is an almost ridiculous image that this man had his tongue knotted. Jesus’ word lets it go. This rite has been retained in the celebration of the complete rite of adult baptism. After the other symbolic gestures of the anointing, of the robe and the light,  the priest touches the ears and the mouth of the baptised, saying: ‘The Lord Jesus who made the deaf hear and the dumb speak grant you to hear his Word soon, and to profess your faith to the praise and glory of God the Father.’

Listen and profess. Listen to the Word and profess the faith. This is the itinerary. This deaf-mute man becomes the prototype of the catechumen, the one who attends the catechism in preparation to receive baptism, to be open to listen to the Word and be open to announce his faith. We want the Lord to continue to whisper this command into our ears, “Ephphatha”, that we become open to his Word and profess our faith through our words and deeds.