Thursday, January 31, 2013
The Lament for Jerusalem
Dear Friends,
A reading from St. Luke’s Gospel (19:41-48):
As [Jesus] drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If this day you only knew what makes for peace – but now it is hidden from your eyes. For the days are coming upon you when your enemies will raise a palisade against you; they will encircle you and hem you in on all sides. They will smash you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another within you because you did not recognize the time of your visitation.”
Then Jesus entered the temple area and proceeded to drive out those who were selling things, saying to them, “It is written,‘My house shall be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of thieves.’” And every day he was teaching in the temple area. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people, meanwhile, were seeking to put him to death, but they could find no way to accomplish their purpose because all the people were hanging on his words.
——————————
Yesterday we had freezing rain and today it is raining. The temperature now is 7 degrees above the freezing point. There will be hardly any snow left by this evening.
Below you will find the message of Our Lord, the Son of God, given to Father Melvin. Jesus spoke to him these words,
“I bless you My brother Melvin and all My brothers and sisters who live in close union with Me. We all have times of sadness in our lives. I suffered great sadness when I was riding on a colt and making My great entrance into Jerusalem. When I saw the holy city, I began to cry because I knew what would happen to this great city after I died on the cross. The temple would be destroyed and all the houses would be torn down. Jerusalem will become a ghost city and nobody will live there. This is because the people there did not welcome Me as their Savior. After that I entered the Temple and chased away all those who were selling inside. This house of God was the greatest house of prayer in all Israel and the people had made it a den of thieves.
“I call you My brothers and sisters to show great respect for your houses of prayer, your parish churches. You know that I live in your churches because the Eucharist is kept there. The church is not the place to talk and laugh but the place to pray and be recollected. In this way you will show your love for Me. I am your Savior who cares for you.”
Father Melvin