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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20455" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_html m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20455" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20455" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:0px 30px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231html_div20014" align="left" width="590"> <p style="color:white;font-family:Sorts Mill Goudy;font-size:4px;line-height:1.5">Your daily Gospel reflection...</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20457" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_text m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20457" style="margin:0px;padding:0px"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20457" style="padding:30px 30px 20px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231text_div20016" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231td_text m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231td_block" style="color:inherit;font-size:12px;font-weight:inherit;line-height:1;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:Arial" align="left" valign="top"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:26px"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;text-align:center"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:26px;font-style:italic;font-weight:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:26px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-style:italic;font-family:georgia,"times new roman""><span class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-aBn"><span class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-aQJ">Thursday, January 4, 2018</span></span></span></b><br></div>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20456" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_picture m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20456" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)" align="center"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20456" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:20px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231image-td" align="center" width="590" valign="top"><a href="http://wordonfire.acemlnb.com/lt.php?s=f4b404287914110dac7009c89e87fa0d&i=1506A1934A29A1266864" style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;color:rgb(237,119,34);display:block;min-width:100%" target="_blank"><img src="http://wordonfire.imgus11.com/public/7e2867fcaf0c2ddd581483e5e17f4d20.png?r=906675161" alt="" style="display:block;border-color:currentcolor;border-style:none;border-width:medium;outline:medium none currentcolor;width:221px;opacity:1;max-width:100%" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-CToWUd" width="221"></a></td>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20453" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_html m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20453" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20453" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:30px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231html_div20012" align="left" width="590"> <p style="color:black;font-family:Avenir Next;font-size:20px;font-weight:500;line-height:1.25;text-align:center;text-transform:uppercase">Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20454" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_html m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20454" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20454" style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);padding:5px 30px 0px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231html_div20013" align="left" width="590"> <p style="color:rgb(237,119,34);font-family:Avenir Next;font-size:18px;line-height:1.25;text-align:center;text-transform:uppercase">John 1:35-42</p>
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<table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%;border-collapse:initial" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row20458" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231widget m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231_widget_text m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231style20458" style="margin:0px;padding:0px"><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231layout-row-padding20458" style="padding:10px 30px 30px" valign="top"><table style="font-size:13px;min-width:100%" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tbody><tr><td id="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231text_div20017" class="m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231td_text m_-2183198140778123310gmail-m_3588902898598313231td_block" style="color:inherit;font-size:12px;font-weight:inherit;line-height:1.5;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:Arial" align="left" valign="top"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;line-height:1.5"> <div style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-weight:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><b style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">Friends,
<span style="background-color:rgb(208,224,227)"><b> in today’s Gospel Jesus invites his first disciples to come and stay
with him</b></span>. I think that this command of Jesus is a bit <span style="background-color:rgb(217,234,211)"><b>like an initiation
ritual</b></span>. <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>In order
to prepare themselves for a lifetime of discipleship, his followers must
first pass through an intensive period of spiritual formation, much
like a novitiate in a monastery</b></span> or training camp in football or boot
camp in the army. During this concentrated time, they were <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>to learn, in
their bones, the essentials of this new way of life. </b></span>So the disciples
learn<span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b> a new way of radical dependency upon God.</b></span></span><br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"> </span><br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">Now
what does all of this have to do with us? You say, "I’m a 50-year-old
man with a wife and kids and job and responsibility; I can’t very well
go drifting off in a boat, trusting in the providence of
God."</span><br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal"> </span><br><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;font-weight:400;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">True
enough, but <span style="background-color:rgb(255,242,204)"><b>you can, for instance, go on a retreat every year. Spend a
week once a year at a monastery or a retreat center, living the
spiritual life intensely; live Lent more severely and more radically
this year, perhaps undertaking a difficult fast or giving alms until it
hurts. </b></span></span></b></b></b><span style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><span style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-weight:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="margin:0px;outline:medium none currentcolor;padding:0px;font-size:18px;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";color:rgb(0,0,0);font-weight:normal;font-style:normal"><span style="color:rgb(0,0,0);font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;text-decoration:inherit;font-family:georgia,"times new roman";font-style:normal">These are things that any of us can do.</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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