Ecclesiastes 44:1-5; Psalm 14; Luke 6:17-23
The first reading from the book of Ecclesiastes calls on us to praise illustrious men and then lists those who have held positions in society and who are remembered for their great and noble works. But in the last section it speaks of generous men and those who kept the covenants and handed them on to their children. Today we praise those Irish people who kept the faith which was handed on to them and for which they are now counted among the Communion of Saints though their names have long since been forgotten. In the Gospel, we have Luke’s account of the Sermon on the Mount and the Beatitudes in which Christ is promising the kingdom to those who are poor in spirit. Those who live by the Beatitudes are those who will inherit the kingdom and be counted among the Communion of Saints.
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Think............. the Irish people, our ancestors, were willing to die rather than give up their Catholic faith. Above you'll see two pictures from the time of the harsh Penal Laws, the Penal Cross, held onto by our ancestors, and a Mass taking place at a Mass Rock, because it was forbidden to build Catholic churches and practice the Catholic faith. You can see the lookouts waiting to warn the people in case they were discovered. There was a price on a priests head.
