Today’s Daily Collection is from Padre Pio.
Collect: Almighty ever-living God, who, by a singular grace, gave the Priest Saint Pius a share in the Cross of your Son and, by means of his ministry, renewed the wonders of your mercy, grant that through his intercession we may be united constantly to the sufferings of Christ, and so brought happily to the glory of the resurrection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ…
“Almighty ever-living God, who, by a singular grace, gave the Priest Saint Pius a share in the Cross of your Son”
— While we thank God for the miraculous gift of Padre Pio’s stigmata, we recognize that it is a “singular grace.” Not many people ever receive this gift, so we allow it to inspire us without placing on ourselves any burden of thinking we should strive for it.
“by means of his ministry, renewed the wonders of your mercy”
— Padre Pio’s share in Christ’s Cross made him an extraordinary minister of God’s mercy. Because the Cross is the instrument of God’s mercy, being close to it makes one more merciful. Pio’s extraordinary proximity to the cross is reflected in his extraordinary dedication to hearing confessions and his ability to read souls.
“Grant that through his intercession we may be united constantly to the sufferings of Christ”
— As we cooperate with God’s mercy, we draw nearer to its source in Christ on the Cross. Knowing ourselves to be weak, we seek the help of grace and the intercession of this man whose own example demonstrates the fruitfulness of truly embracing the Cross.
Advice: Examination – do you allow fear of your friends, family, and co-workers to prevent you from standing with Pope Francis on controversial issues like abortion, care for the environment, same-sex marriage, care for immigrants, and contraception? Do you doubt the words of Christ “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt 5:11-12)?
Action – Go to Confession! Sure, your priest probably can’t read souls, but Padre Pio was fond of telling people that any priest’s absolution was just as good as his own.
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| Padre Pio, pray for us! |