“Peter began to say to Jesus, ‘We have given up everything and followed you.’ Jesus said, ‘Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come.’” (Mark 10: 28-30)
REFLECTION:
Have you ever been away from home? Did you get homesick? When I was a teenager, I did some volunteer work with the Daughters of Charity, aka, the Flying Nuns. The sisters had a nursing home in St. Louis, Missouri. I went to help take care of the elderly residents and help in the cafeteria. After about two weeks of only corresponding with my family by mail, I finally called them collect to talk to them. A flood of emotions filled me when I heard my Dad and Mom’s voices. I was overwhelmed with missing them!
When I was praying and reflecting on Peter and Jesus’ conversation, I thought about the young men who discern and become priests. They have left everything and everyone they loved back home to serve God. What an unselfish commitment!
PAPA members pray for priests as St. John Paul II said in “Pastores Dabo Vobis” …”The Priest is a living and transparent image of Christ, …”(PAPA Handbook pages 6 -7). We pray for priests to be close to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (lovers of the Eucharist) and that they will be blessed abundantly for their unselfishness and faithfulness on this earth and in heaven.
Let us pray the PAPA Prayer for Priests…
