Guidelines Sheet - Series on the Means of Perseverance (Sept. 9-13, 2024)

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General Theme:
Means of perseverance
 
General Objective:
To grow in our relationship with God through prayer
 
Objective of the week:
The prayer of thanksgiving and of praise

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INTRODUCTION TO “PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING”

“As part of our continuing catechesis on prayer, we now turn to the prayer of thanksgiving. This prayer of thanksgiving always begin from here: from the recognition that grace precedes us. We were "thought of before" then we learned how to think; we were "loved before" then we learned how to love; we were "desired before" then our hearts conceived a desire. If we view life like this, then to “thank you” becomes the driving force of our day.  But how often we  forget to say “thank you.”
 
   Above all, let us not forget the value of saying  thank you. Why? Because if we are bearers of gratitude, even if it is only a "bit " of it, then the world itself will become better. That " little bit" of thank you is already enough to transmit "hope". Therefore our gratitude must be expressed in an attitude of thanksgiving that can transmit even a little bit of hope to our world that needs it. "Everything is united and everything is connected, and each one can do their part wherever they are.” (Pope Francis, General Audience, 30 December 2020)

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MONDAY
Give thanks to God for His goodness

Psalms 100:1-5
“Sing to the Lord, all the world! Worship the Lord with joy; come before him with happy songs! Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we belong to him; we are his people, we are his flock. Enter the Temple gates with thanksgiving; go into its courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise him. The Lord is good; his love is eternal and his faithfulness lasts forever.”
 
Psalm 128:28-29
“You are my God, and I give you thanks; I will proclaim your greatness. Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good, and his love is eternal.”
 

• How often do I say "thank you God!" for all what I receive from Him?

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TUESDAY
Jesus teaches us to be thankful

Luke 17:11-19
“As Jesus made his way to Jerusalem, he went along the border between Samaria and Galilee.
He was going into a village when he was met by ten men suffering from a dreaded skin disease. They stood at a distance and shouted, "Jesus! Master! Have pity on us!"  Jesus saw them and said to them, "Go and let the priests examine you." On the way they were made clean.  When one of them saw that he was healed, he came back, praising God in a loud voice.  He threw himself to the ground at Jesus' feet and thanked him. The man was a Samaritan.  Jesus spoke up, ´There were ten who were healed; where are the other nine? Why is this foreigner the only one who came back to give thanks to God? ´  And Jesus said to him, "Get up and go; your faith has made you well."
 
From the Pope’s General Audience
(30 December 2020)
The Pope continues emphasizing about the prayer of thanksgiving: “This passage reminds us of the importance of gratitude. It shows the great difference between hearts that are thankful and those that are not; between people who see everything as their entitlement and those who receive everything as grace.
 
The 10 lepers were marginalized. Jesus did not back off from meeting them. Those 10 lepers trusted, they did not remain there until they were cured, no: they trusted and they went immediately, and while they were on their way, all 10 of them were cured. The priests would have therefore been able to verify their healing and readmit them to normal life. But here is the most important point: only one in the group, before going to the priests, returned to thank Jesus and to praise God for the grace received. Only one, the other nine continued on their way. And Jesus points out that that man was a Samaritan, a sort of “heretic” for the Jews of that time. Jesus comments: “Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”  This narrative is touching.
 
  Naturally, the 10 lepers were all happy about having recovered their health, thus being allowed to end that unending forced quarantine that excluded them from the community. But among them, there was one who experienced an additional joy: in addition to being healed, he rejoices at the encounter with Jesus. He is not only freed from evil, but he now possesses the certainty of being loved.
 

• Do I encounter Jesus personally when I give thanks to Him? Am I joyful for his encounter out of my own gratitude to Him?

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WEDNESDAY
Be thankful and joyful

Ephesians 5:20
“In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, always give thanks for everything to God the Father.”
 
1 Thessalonians 5:16-20
   “Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus. Do not restrain the Holy Spirit; do not despise inspired messages.”
 
From the Pope’s General Audience
(30 December 2020)
The Pope continues saying: “Therefore, brothers and sisters, let us seek to remain always in the joy of the encounter with Jesus. Let us cultivate joyfulness. The devil, instead, after having deluded us — with whatever temptation — always leaves us sad and alone. If we are in Christ, there is no sin and no threat that can ever prevent us from continuing our journey with joy, along with many fellow travel companions.
The path to happiness is the one that Saint Paul described at the end of one of his letters: “Pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit” (1Thess 5:17-19). Do not quench the Spirit, what a beautiful project of life! Not quenching the Spirit that we have within leads us to gratitude.” 

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INTRODUCTION TO “PRAYER OF PRAISE”

​   “Dear Brothers and Sisters, in our continuing catechesis on Christian prayer, we now consider the prayer of praise.
 
   To whom is praise helpful? To us or to God? A text of the Eucharistic liturgy invites us to pray to God in this way, it says this: “Although you have no need of our praise, yet our thanksgiving is itself your gift, since our praises add nothing to your greatness, but profit us for salvation” (Roman Missal , Common Preface IV). By giving praise, we are saved.
 
   The prayer of praise is helpful to us. The Catechism defines it this way: it “shares in the blessed happiness of the pure of heart who love God in faith before seeing him in glory” (no. 2639). Paradoxically it must be practiced not only when life fills us with happiness, but above all in difficult moments, in moments of darkness when the path becomes an uphill climb. That too is the time for praise, like Jesus who in the dark moment praises the Father. Because we learn that, through that ascent, that difficult path, that wearisome path, those demanding passages, we get to see a new panorama, a broader horizon. Giving praise is like breathing pure oxygen: it purifies the soul, it makes you look far ahead, it does not leave you imprisoned in the difficult and dark moment of hardship. (Pope Francis, General Audience, 13 January 2021)

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THURSDAY
Praise God Always

Psalm 42: 9-11
 To God, my defender, I say, "Why have you forgotten me? Why must I go on suffering from the cruelty of my enemies?"
 
 I am crushed by their insults, as they keep on asking me, "Where is your God?"  Why am I so sad? Why am I so troubled? I will put my hope in God, and once again I will praise him, my Savior, and my God.
 
Psalm 105:1-5
Give thanks to the Lord, proclaim his greatness; tell the nations what he has done.  Sing praise to the Lord; tell the wonderful things he has done.  Be glad that we belong to him; let all who worship him rejoice.  Go to the Lord for help; and worship him continually.
 
Matthew 11:20-26
 The people in the towns where Jesus had performed most of his miracles did not turn from their sins, so he reproached those towns.
 
 "How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago put on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!
 I assure you that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to the people of Tyre and Sidon than to you!  And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would still be in existence today!  You can be sure that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to Sodom than to you!"  At that time Jesus said, "Father, Lord of heaven and earth! I thank you because you have shown to the unlearned what you have hidden from the wise and learned.  Yes, Father, this was how you were pleased to have it happen.
 
Pope Francis comments about the last passage: “Matthew’s Gospel tells us that Jesus himself, in facing hostility and rejection, responds by praising God. He thanks the Father for who he is and for his love in revealing himself “to mere children” (Mt 11:25), to the poor and humble of our world. Jesus’ example of praise calls us to respond as he did at times when we feel God is absent or evil seems victorious.
 
Jesus, who highly recommended the prayer of asking, at the very moment when he would have had reason to ask the Father for explanations, instead begins to praise him. It seems to be a contradiction, but therein lies the truth.
 

• Have I learned today from Jesus on how to praise the Father?
• Does prayer of praise give new perspective to my personal relationship with God?

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FRIDAY
Canticle of the Creatures by St. Francis of Assisi

​Most High, all-powerful, good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory, and the honor, and all blessing,
To You alone, Most High, do they belong,
and no human is worthy to mention Your name.
Praised be You, my Lord, with all Your creatures,
especially Sir Brother Sun,
Who is the day and through whom You give us light.
And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor;
and bears a likeness of You, Most High One.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
in heaven You formed them clear and precious and beautiful.
Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Wind,
and through the air, cloudy and serene, and every kind of weather,
through whom You give sustenance to Your creatures.
​Praised be You, my Lord, through Sister Water,
who is very useful and humble and precious and chaste.

Praised be You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You light the night,
he is beautiful and playful and robust and strong.
Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains and governs us,
and who produces various fruit with colored flowers and herbs.
Praised be You, my Lord,
through those who give pardon for Your love,
and bear infirmity and tribulation.
Blessed are those who endure in peace
for by You, Most High, shall they be crowned.
Praised be You, my Lord, through our Sister Bodily Death,
from whom no one living can escape.
Woe to those who die in mortal sin.
Blessed are those whom death will find in Your most holy will,
for the second death shall do them no harm.
Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks and serve Him with great humility.

Pope Francis remarks: “We see clearly the prayer of praise in the example of Saint Francis of Assisi, who composed his famous Canticle of the Creatures when he was troubled by sickness and impending blindness. In praising God for everything, even “Sister Death.” Francis, together with all the saints, show us that we can always give praise, in good times and bad, because God is the faithful Friend. This is the foundation of praise: God is the faithful Friend, and his love never fails. He is always beside us. He always awaits us. In difficult and dark moments, let us have the courage to say: “Blessed are you, O Lord.” Praising the Lord. This will do us much good.”
 
Let´s repeat this prayer several times: Blessed are you, Lord. I praise you.