Thursday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

We pray the opening of the day and let Saint Gregory of Nyssa put words to the dizzying wonder of trying to contemplate God. We hold the paradox of “seeing God” and ask for the steady hope that comes when Christ reaches for us in our depths.
• opening prayers and the morning offering joined to the Mass
• Gregory’s image of standing on a ledge above the sea
• “Blessed are the clean of heart” as both promise and challenge
• the Scriptural claim that no one can see God and live
• hope restored when the Word reaches for us like Peter on the water
• Christ making the Father known beyond our understanding
If you found this time of prayer and reflection fruitful and would like more opportunities to grow in your faith, consider joining the Cristeros and purchasing our publications now available on Amazon.com.
The Cristeros app is available on the Apple app in Google Play Store.
More information on the Cristeros can be found at theCristeros.org.

Transcript

Opening Prayers And Offering

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Thursday, in the twelfth week of ordinary time, in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. O God, come to my assistance. O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. O my Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, for the remission of my sins, for the intentions of my family and friends, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen.

Gregory’s Cliffside Image

SPEAKER_00 0:46

From a homily by Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Bishop. Consider the feelings of a man who looks down into the depths of the sea from the top of a mountain. This is similar to my own experience when the voice of the Lord from on high, as from a mountaintop, reached the unfathomable depths of my intellect. Along the sea coast, you may often see mountains facing the sea. It is as though they had been sliced in two, with a sheer drop from top to bottom. At the top of a projection forms a ledge overhanging the depths below. If a man were to look down from that ledge, he would be overcome by dizziness.

The Paradox Of Seeing God

SPEAKER_00 1:26

In this same way my soul grows dizzy when it hears the great voice of the Lord, saying, Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God. The vision of God is offered to those who have purified their hearts, yet no man has seen God at any time. These are the words of the great Saint John, and they are confirmed by Saint Paul's lofty thought, in the words, God is he whom no one has seen or can see. He is that smooth, steep, and sheer rock on which the mind can find no secure resting place to get a grip or lift ourselves up. In the view of Moses, he is inaccessible. In spite of every effort our minds cannot approach him. We are cut off by the words, no man can see God and live, and yet to see God is eternal life. But John, Paul, and Moses, pillars of our faith, all testified that it is impossible to see God. Look at the dizziness that affects the soul drawn to contemplating the depths of these statements. If God is life, then he who does not see God does not see life, yet God cannot be seen. The apostles and prophets, inspired by the Holy Spirit, have testified to this. Into what straits is man's hope driven?

Hope When Minds Go Under

SPEAKER_00 2:44

Yet God does raise and sustain our flagging hopes. He rescued Peter from drowning and made the sea into a firm surface beneath his feet. He does the same for us. The hands of the Word of God are stretched out to us when we are out of our depth, buffeted and lost in speculation. Grasped firmly in his hands we shall be without fear. Blessed are the pure of heart, he says, for they shall see God. No one has ever seen God. The only Son of God, nearest to the Father's heart, has made him known. Great is the Lord and highly to be praised. His greatness is beyond our understanding.

Christ Makes The Father Known

SPEAKER_00 3:26

The only Son of God, nearest to the Father's heart, has made him known. Grant, O Lord, that we may always revere and love your holy name, for you never deprive of your guidance those you set firm on the foundation of your love, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever.

Closing Prayer For Guidance

SPEAKER_00 3:48

Amen.

Sacred Heart And Marian Devotion

SPEAKER_00 3:50

All that I have, and all that I am, I give to your hands, Jesus, through the heart of Mary, your blessed mother. Amen. Sacred heart of Jesus, have mercy on us. Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Invitation To Grow With Cristuros

SPEAKER_00 4:10

If you found this time of prayer and reflection fruitful and would like more opportunities to grow in your faith, consider joining the Cristuros and purchasing our publications now available on Amazon.com. The Cristuros app is available on the Apple app in Google Play Store. More information on the Cristuros can be found at theCristuros.org.