Let Us Never Forget!

 

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Master of the Universe:

On this most solemn of occasions, we open our hearts, minds, and souls to you.

As we remember the six million, the eleven million, the indifference, and the evil;

As we honor the heroes, the martyrs, the survivors, and the victims;

We ask you to soothe our souls, to amplify our memories, to strengthen our resolve, and to hear our prayers.

We ask for your presence in our midst; for healing, light, and love to soothe and ease our pain, as we commemorate the horrors that were committed not long ago. Please, oh Holy One, be gentle with our souls.

We ask that you help us to forever remember the stories we hear. As tales of the atrocities are shared, as we re-encounter the unthinkable, we ask that these memories be strengthened and never fade, in the hope that those who remember the mistakes of the past will not repeat them. Please, oh Holy One, amplify our ability to remember.

We ask that you strengthen our will, that you help us to ensure that the world does not again see such monstrosities. We say “never again” and we dedicate ourselves to this principle, to the idea that justice does not allow persecution, that genocide shall not be repeated, and that vigilance is the responsibility of freedom, at all costs. Please, oh Holy One, make manifest our resolve that these horrors remain but memories.

We ask that you answer our prayers. We pray that the call of evil falls on deaf ears, that those who fight for freedom and justice always prevail, that those who need protection do not become victims. We pray that the lessons we learn from this darkest hour allow all humankind to better itself, and to truly and nobly embody the idea that we are each made in Your image. We pray for the souls of the millions and millions of victims of this brutality; we pray that we honor their lives and their memories by observing this day, and by doing everything in our power and beyond to make sure that no such shadow again darkens our world.

Above all, we pray for shalom—for wholeness and peace—to be in our midst, now and forever. Please, oh Holy One, answer our prayers and bring us a world devoid of hatred, filled instead with peace.

Ken yehi ratzon – may this be God’s will. And may we all say together, Amen.

by Rabbi David Katz

---

This prayer was originally shared at the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station’s 2014 Holocaust Remembrance Service.

Witnesses of Peace . . .

Lord, make me your witness.

In this world of darkness, let my light shine.

In this world of lies, let me speak the good news of truth.

In the world of hate and fear, let me radiate your love.

In this world of despair, let me spread hope.

In this world of systemic injustice and institutionalized evil,                                                                  let me promote justice and goodness.

In this world of sadness and sorrow, let me bring joy.

In this world of cruelty and condemnation, let me show your           

compassion.

In this world of vengeance and retaliation, let me offer your                 

mercy and reconciliation.

In this world of war, let me serve your gift of peace.

In this world of violence, make me a teacher and apostle of                                                         your nonviolence.

In this world of death, let me proclaim the new life of resurrection.

Help me to witness to the resurrection of Jesus by loving my

enemies, showing compassion, feeding the hungry, sheltering the    

homeless, serving the poor, liberating the oppressed, resisting    

war, beating plowshares, and disarming my heart and the world.

In the name of the risen, nonviolent Jesus, Amen

Taken from You Will be My Witnesses: Saints, Prophets and Martyrs, By John Dear

A Peace Prayer . . .

 

Father, Mother, God,

 Thank you for your presence

 during the hard and mean days.

 For then we have you to lean upon.

 

 Thank you for your presence

 during the bright and sunny days,

 for then we can share that which we have

 with those who have less.

 

 And thank you for your presence

 during the Holy Days, for then we are able

 to celebrate you and our families

 and our friends.

 For those who have no voice,

 we ask you to speak.

 

 For those who feel unworthy,

 we ask you to pour your love out

 in waterfalls of tenderness.

 For those who live in pain,

 we ask you to bathe them

 in the river of your healing.

 

For those who are lonely, we ask

 you to keep them company.

 For those who are depressed,

 we ask you to shower upon them

 the light of hope.

 

 Dear Creator, You, the borderless

 sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the

 world that which we need most—Peace.

 

prayer - Maya Angelou

+ Blessing The Ordinary +

 

An Ordinary Blessing for Ordinary Time ~

Let these words
lay themselves
like a blessing
upon your head,
your shoulders,

As if,
like hands,
they could pass on
to you what you most need
for this day,

as if they could
anoint you
not merely for
the path ahead

but for this
ordinary moment
that opens itself
to you - -

opens itself
like another hand
that unfurls itself,
that reaches out
to gather
these words
in the bowl
of its palm.

You may think
this blessing
lives within
these words,

but I tell you
it lives
in the reaching;

it lives
in the ache
where this blessing
begins;

it lives
in the hollow
made by the place
where the hands
of this blessing
meet.

From: Circle of Grace by Jan Richardson

 http://www.janrichardson.com/index.htmlichardson.com 
©Jan Richardson. janrichardson.com

The Best Wine!

 Cana Wine

By Irene Zimmerman, SSSF

Woman Un-Bent (p.31)

“The weather’s so hot and no more wine’s to be bought in all of Cana!
It’s just what I feared . . . just why I begged my husband to keep the wedding small.”

“Does he know?” Mary asked.

“Not yet. Oh, the shame!
Look at my son and his beautiful bride!
They’ll never be able to raise their heads again, not in this small town.”

“Then don’t tell him yet.”

Mary greeted the guests as she made her way through crowded reception rooms.
“I must talk to you, Son,” she said unobtrusively.

Moments later he moved toward the back serving rooms. They hadn’t seen each other since the morning he’d left her . . . before the baptism and the desert time.They could talk tomorrow on the way to Capernaum.

She spoke urgently, her words both request and command to him: “They have no wine.”
But he hadn’t been called yet! He hadn’t felt it yet. Would she send him so soon to the hounds and jackals? For wine?

Was wine so important then?
“Woman, what concern is that to you and me? My hour has not yet come.”
Her unflinching eyes reflected to him his twelve-year-old self telling her with no contrition: “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

She left him standing there . . . vine from her stock, ready for fruit bearing . . . and went to the servants. “Do whatever he tells you,” she said.

From across the room she watched them fill water jars, watched the chief steward drink from the dripping cup, saw his eyes open in wide surprise.
She watched her grown son toast the young couple, watched the groom’s parents and guests raise their cups.

She saw it all clearly: saw the Best Wine pouring out for them all.

 

Artist Unknown

Part Two: A Love Too Small

 

Part Two

With that last bolt of lightning

a great calm came over me

and I felt free

the way I always feel, when

I’m finally able to own the truth.

 

God gave me back the pieces of my heart

without trying to fix them up or mend them

The Holy One looked at me with trust

with total confidence

as if to say,

I’ll be here when you’re ready to begin

the transformation of your heart

for we both know 

Your love is too small

That’s why your heart is so divided

That’s why the pieces never seem to fit.

 

I took the pieces back with reverence

My tears proclaiming

the truth of all I felt.

There was no pressure, no force

just the God of morning

asking for my love.

 

And now, every time I see those flashes

in the northern sky

I hear again, a voice

saying simply,

Your love is too small.

And I weep; I weep at the possibility

of who I could be.

(Used with permission)

Part One: A Love Too Small

 

Too Small a Love

Author: Macrina Wiederkehr

Seasons of Your Heart (1991)

 

Like lightning at dawn

the All-Powerful One came

electrifying

energizing

frightening

shattering

crashing

into my morning prayer!

 

Totally unprepared

for this kind of interruption

I froze on my knees

both in wonder and terror.

There was no morning silence left,

no comforting darkness to enfold me

only those flashes of light

that make hiding impossible.

 

It wasn’t exactly a surprise

I was expecting God this morning

But not like this

 

I was waiting for peace

I was looking for that quiet reassurance

that silence sometimes brings

I was listening for a sound of wings

hovering over me

surrounding me with care

convincing me of presence and protection.

 

But this?

Oh, this was awful!

God stood there

with terrible,

penetrating

loving eyes,

saying only:

Your love is too small!

 

Standing that close to truth

felt uncomfortable, unbearable

and I tried to hide my face

the way I often do

when truth gets too close.

I tried to hide the pieces

of my terribly divided heart.

But then the light came again

And God was standing there

even closer than before

holding the pieces of my heart

with such tenderness

still saying,

Your love is too small.

A Tired World . . .

Sweet Darkness

When your eyes are tired                          
the world is tired also.

When your vision is gone                       
no part of the world                     
can find you.

Time to go into the dark     
where the night has eyes                        
to recognize its own.
There you can be sure           
you are not beyond love.
                                               
The dark will be                          
 your womb tonight.
The night will give you a horizon
further than you can see.

You must learn one thing.                
The world was made                                  
to be free in.

Give up all the other worlds
except the one to which you
belong.

Sometimes it takes darkness
and the sweet confinement
of your aloneness
 to learn

Anything or anyone
that does not bring you alive
is too small for you.

- David Whyte

Agnes - A woman before her time!

 

St. Agnes Feast day ~ January 21 Reflection

 

 

Someone once wrote: “If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”  Today, January 21st, we gather to remember and to celebrate St. Agnes of Rome, under whose patronage the Sisters of St. Agnes were founded. She declared herself Christian in a pagan society and committed herself to remain virgin in a patriarchal culture.  She gave testimony that she had chosen Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior with the public sacrifice of her life.

Much of her life and death are surrounded by legend, but early writings tell us that Agnes was born into a wealthy and powerful Roman Christian family and, according to tradition, she suffered martyrdom at the age of 12 or 13 during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian on January 21, in the year 305.

The story is told how the Prefect Sempronius wished Agnes to marry his son, for women, at that time, were property of the State and had children to promote the State’s agenda.  But Agnes refused a forced marriage and remained adamant that she had consecrated her virginity to Jesus Christ.  Her refusal was considered an act of treason and punishable by death.  At that time, Roman law did not permit the execution of virgins, so Sempronius had a naked Agnes dragged through the streets to a brothel.  In one version of the story, it is said, that as she processed through the streets, Agnes prayed, and her hair grew and covered her entire body.

Some also asserted that all of the men who attempted to rape her were immediately struck blind.  She was sentenced to death with many other Christian companions who refused to worship the Roman gods and to pay homage to the emperor as divine.

Agnes grew up in a patriarchal culture, whose religion included many gods – a religion of laws, customs, and prescriptions that no longer had the power to define her.  Agnes chose a new way of life – a life of virginity.  She was resolute in choosing her own power in Christ to define her new identity.

So what is the Good News for us today?

• Our God continues to invite everyone to live with hope, trust, courage, and faith.  We are all called to be witnesses of the Risen Christ. 
• As women and men religious, associates, friends, and partners in ministry, it is on such a feast as today, that we are invited to ponder our own witness to our faith and the values of our Christian lives.
• That like Agnes, when we find ourselves standing “naked” in our vulnerabilities, limitations, powerlessness, doubts, dilemmas, and decisions that affect the social, economic, cultural, religious, and political challenges of life, may we more and more learn to call upon the Spirit for guidance, grit, and grace – for it is in God that we live and move and have our being.
   

  

  Tomb of St. Agnes in Rome

Never Forget: Leadership, honesty, humility, and courage!!

 I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. . . . With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day. . . . And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.

~ Excerpt from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “ I Have a Dream” Speech

Deep Listening . . .

 

May the God of Silence bless you, drawing you away from the clamor and chaos of a diverted world. In the hush of God's wordless presence, may you know the unutterable sacredness of the gift of divine love. May your "inner self grow strong" in that love. May the God of Silence, the God of solitude be with you.

--Maxine Shonk, OP

You are Holy . . .

 

You are Holy: 

                                                          

The Second Sunday in Ordinary Time 2026 

January 18, 2026

www.johnpredmoresj.com | predmore.blogspot.com

 

Isaiah 43:3-6; Psalm 40; 1 Corinthians 1:1-3; John 1:29-34

 

One theme that passes through these readings point is holiness. In Isaiah, Israel is called to be a nation apart from others, set as a light to the nations, because of their right relations with the one God. In Corinthians, Paul and Sosthenes address the people of the city who are called to be holy. In the Gospel, John the Baptist notices Jesus walking towards him and declares his holiness with these words, “Behold the Lamb of God.” Jesus is set apart for a divine mission and John recognizes him as the Son of God.

 

Through baptism, we are called to be holy, a people set apart because our faith in God demands our right response in gratitude. In our liturgy, we constantly ask God to make us holy, and we cry out in the heavenly liturgy, “Holy, holy, holy.” What is holiness? Perhaps some of you think of it as moral perfection and purity. Why? Because that is what we learned in our youth, but we are maturing individuals. We also have read books about the saints that wrote about their devotion or their all-encompassing commitment to God. We think the saints are holy and we must strive to be like them.

 

Let me ask you: Are you holy? Of course you are. Why would you think otherwise? You may say, “I am not worthy, but the question is: Who is?” We receive mercy that we do not deserve and we are thankful for that, but that does not diminish our holiness. It might be time for you to begin to see yourself as saints because that is who you are. Holiness does not mean perfection.

 

For a Catholic, holiness means living in close union with God and becoming the person God created you to be. You are to love your God and your neighbor as yourself. Holiness is sharing God’s life. It is friendship with God, and we deepen that relationship by personal and communal prayer, participating in the sacraments, being the sacrament, and in responding to God’s invitations to deeper life. 

 

We become holier when we see and love the world the way that Christ does. It often involves our bothering to care for the poor, the vulnerable, and those in need. It is evidenced through a self-giving love, sharing our charity, giving mercy when it is not deserved, and learning how to reconcile difficult and broken relationships. Holiness is expressed in different ways. Therese of Lisieux modeled quiet faithfulness, while Teresa of Calcutta engaged in radical service, Maximilian Kolbe and Oscar Romero displayed courage under persecution. You have unique ways in which you reveal your holiness.

 

I want to ask the question again: Do you now see yourself as holy? I hope you do. I hope you see yourself rightly as the saints you are. Holiness is lived in the everyday world. If you could see yourself the way Jesus sees you, he would say, “Wow! I’m pleased. I’m impressed. You are remarkable. Here is a friend who is truly impressive. You cause me to catch my breath.” We need to see ourselves and each other the way Jesus sees us. When we do, the whole world is charged with the grandeur of God. 

 

Blessing for Waiting

 

Who wait for the night to end.

bless them.

 

Who wait for the night to begin

bless them.

 

Who wait in the hospital room

who wait in the cell

who wait in prayer

bless them.

 

Who wait for news

who wait for the phone call

who wait for a word

who wait for a job - a house - a child

bless them.

 

Who wait for one who will come home...

who wait for one who

will not come home

bless them.

 

Who wait with fear

who wait with joy

who wait with peace

who wait with rage

who wait for the end

who wait for the beginning

who wait alone

who wait together

bless them.

 

Who wait without knowing

what they wait for or why

bless them.

 

Who wait when they

should not wait

who wait when they should

be in motion

who wait when they need to rise

who wait when they need to set out

bless them.

 

Who wait for the end of waiting

who wait for the fullness of time

who wait emptied and

open and ready

who wait for you,

O bless.

Jan Richardson

Circle of Grace http://www.janrichardson.com/index.htmlichardson.com 
janrichardson.com

A Prayer at Midnight - Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. (January 19 - Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday)

From a speech to the American Psychological Association in 1967 by Martin Luther King, Jr., who was assassinated seven months later.

“I am sure that we will recognize that there are some things in our society, some things in our world, to which we should never be adjusted. There are some things concerning which we must always be maladjusted if we are to be people of good will. We must never adjust ourselves to racial discrimination and racial segregation. We must never adjust ourselves to religious bigotry. We must never adjust ourselves to economic conditions that take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few. We must never adjust ourselves to the madness of militarism, and the self-defeating effects of physical violence...

It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence: it is either nonviolence or nonexistence. As President Kennedy declared, 'Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind.' And so the alternative to disarmament, the alternative to a suspension in the development and use of nuclear weapons, the alternative to strengthening the United Nations and eventually disarming the whole world, may well be a civilization plunged into the abyss of annihilation. Our earthly habitat will be transformed into an inferno that even Dante could not envision.

Thus, it may well be that our world is in dire need of a new organization: The International Association for the Advancement of Creative Maladjustment. Men and women should be as maladjusted as the prophet Amos, who in the midst of the injustices of his day, could cry out in words that echo across the centuries. 'Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.'... And through such creative maladjustment, we may be able to emerge from the bleak and desolate midnight of man's inhumanity to man, into the bright and glittering daybreak of freedom and justice.”