Monday, July 09, 2007

Ordinary Time

The weather this week after Canada Day and the Fourth of July is sizzling. Today in Ontario it is supposed to be about 90 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit or 35 Celsius. We thank God for air conditioning.
In the Church's liturgy, this is considered "Ordinary Time"--the 14th week of it. This week we will celebrate the feast of St. Benedict. He is one of the Patron Saints of Europe, the Founder of western monasticism. We who have the Bible today can thank Benedict's monks who painstakingly copied Bible manuscripts by hand in the monasteries that spread throughout all of Europe. "Ora et labora" that is, pray and work was Benedict's original motto. Then a third element was added: "studia", or study.
Another legacy which Benedict and his monks gave to all the world is that of "lectio divina." It literally means "divine reading." There is a lot to say about "lectio." In another post I will tell you more.
As we live this ordinary time in which every minute is an extraordinary grace, let us think about Jesus in Nazareth who spent 30 years of "ordinary living."

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