A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 6:12-16
Jesus went up to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God. When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles: Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called a Zealot, and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
REFLECTION: Jesus went up to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God
Jesus went up to the mountain to pray, and He spent the night in prayer to God. After this He came down and chose the Twelve apostles. We can imagine that Jesus prayed with sincerity, reverence and humility to God. He sought and was connected to God's will and blessings. The way to this intimacy would be through His deep communion with God the Father. His prayer was an expression of His love to God the Father and the Holy Spirit.
He chose apostles that came from a variety of backgrounds. Some were tax collectors, fisherman and one would become His traitor. Today is the feast day of two of His apostles, St Simon and St Jude. Jesus' example always was one of prayer and then action.
If we pray briefly, superficially, quickly, or distracted we will never achieve that intimacy. If someone is praying, do not disturb them. If you are inclined to talk, do so away from someone that is praying. Respect their time spent with God. If you cannot sleep at night, get up and pray. If Jesus prayed all night, very likely we are not praying enough. Seek God, allow Him to speak to you and then listen, let Him be with you and to consume you in His love.
Our saints are constantly our guides. St Jose Maria Escriva and St John Henry Newman emphasized personal holiness through prayer. Prayer should never be underestimated and it very likely is that which we most need to improve on.
Visit our section Devotions on our website papamio.org. It is filled with beautiful prayers and novenas.
God Bless
