Thursday in the 1st week of Ordinary Time

You are worthy, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power,
— for you created all things, and only through your will they were created and have being.
You created everything that is, heaven and earth, and all that the heavens hold within their span;
— For you created all things, and only through your will they were created and have being.
From a Discourse Against the Pagans by Saint Athanasius, bishop
The Word of the Father gives order, direction and unity to creation
By his own wisdom and Word, who is our Lord and Savior Christ, the all-holy Father (whose excellence far exceeds that of any creature), like a skillful steersman guides to safety all creation, regulating and keeping it in being, as he judges right. It is right that creation should exist as he has made it and as we see it happening, because this is his will, which no one would deny. For if the movement of the universe were irrational, and the world rolled on in random fashion, one would be justified in disbelieving what we say. But if the world is founded on reason, wisdom and science, and is filled with orderly beauty, then it must owe its origin and order to none other than the Word of God.
He is God, the living and creative God of the universe, the Word of the good God, who is God in his own right. The Word is different from all created things: he is the unique Word belonging only to the good Father. This is the Word that created this whole world and enlightens it by his loving wisdom. He who is the good Word of the good Father produced the order in all creation, joining opposites together, and forming from them one harmonious sound. He is God, one and only-begotten, who proceeds in goodness from the Father as from the fountain of goodness, and gives order, direction and unity to creation.
By his eternal Word the Father created all things and implanted a nature in his creatures. He did not want to see them tossed about at the mercy of their own natures, and so be reduced to nothingness. But in his goodness he governs and sustains the whole of nature by his Word (who is himself also God), so that under the guidance, providence and ordering of that Word, the whole of nature might remain stable and coherent in his light. Nature was to share in the Father’s Word, whose reality is true, and be helped by him to exist, for without him it would cease to be. For unless the Word, who is the very image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, kept it in existence it could not exist. For whatever exists, whether visible or invisible, remains in existence through him and in him, and he is also the head of the Church, as we are taught by the ministers of truth in their sacred writings.
The almighty and most holy Word of the Father pervades the whole of reality, everywhere unfolding his power and shining on all things visible and invisible. He sustains it all and binds it together in himself. He leaves nothing devoid of his power but gives life and keeps it in being throughout all of creation and in each individual creature.
Responsory:
In the beginning, before he made the earth,
before he hollowed out the deep,
before he touched the waters and made them flow,
— before the mountains were settled into place, the Lord created me.
When he established the heavens, I was there like a master craftsman working at his side.
— Before the mountains were settled into place, the Lord created me.
Additional Reading:
Sirach 42:15 – 43:12: All creation gives praise to God
The Cristeros Rule of Life
As Cristeros, we dedicate ourselves to a a life of true devotion to Jesus through Mary, particularly in the form of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Our Lady of Guadalupe, Pray for Us.
We begin our days with a Morning Offering dedicating our day:
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day, in union with the holy sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, for the remission of my sins, for the intentions of my family and friends, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen.
At a high or low point during the day, we pray to the Holy Spirit, handing over our accomplishments or sufferings:
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of thy faithful, and enkindle in us the fire of thy love, send forth thy spirit and we shall be created, and though shall renew the face of the earth. Amen.
At some point each day, on our own or with our family or friends, we pray to our Mother Mary in the form of Guadalupe, giving all that we have and are to Jesus through Mary by reciting one of the following:
- A daily Rosary, focusing on the Fruits of the Mystery.
- The Hail Holy Queen
Every night before we go to sleep, by ourselves or with our wife, we pray a nightly examine using the ACTS formula:
- Adoration: We adore you and Christ and we bless You, because by Your Holy Cross, You have redeemed the world.
- Contrition: Ask God for forgiveness for all the times you have sinned or fallen short that day,
- Thanksgiving: Thank God for all the gifts he has given you that day, including the grace for those moments you have acted virtuously and towards the Good.
- Supplication: We ask God for his blessings that night and the next day, either with particular requests or in general, and end with a prayer dedicating ourselves to Him through Our Lady of Guadalupe: All that we have and all that we are, we give to your hands Jesus, through the heart of Mary, your blessed mother. Amen.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, Pray for Us.

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