Why did Jesus curse a fig tree?

[Rich]

Why did Jesus curse a fig tree?

Fig trees were a common and important source of food for the Jews.
Bad figs or a decaying fig tree was linked with evil deeds and
spiritual decay. The unfruitful fig tree symbolized the outcome of
Israel's unresponsiveness to the word of God. The prophets depicted
the languishing fig tree as signifying the desolation and calamity of
Israel due to her unfaithfulness to God (see Joel 1:7,12; Habakuk
3:17; and Jeremiah 8:13). The history of Israel is one long
preparation for the coming of the Promised One. But the promise is
unfulfilled in those who reject Jesus through unbelief. (See also
Jesus’ parable of the barren fig tree in Luke 13:6-9). Jesus’ cursing
of a fig tree is a prophetic action against the faithlessness of those
who rejected his message. For faith to be fruitful and productive, it
must be nourished with the word of God (2 Timothy 3:16; Colossians
3:16) and be rooted in love (Galatians 5:6).

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June 1st - Bl. John Pelingotto
(Also known as John Pelino Goto, Giovanni Pelino Goto)

d. 1304
JOHN PELINGOTTO was the son of a prosperous merchant of Urbino, but he
himself from childhood cared nothing for the things of this world. He
became a Franciscan tertiary and would have retired into a hermitage
had it not been for the determined opposition of his parents; out of
regard for their wishes he remained at home, where he lived a life of
prayer and austerity. For a time he shut himself up and never went out
except to church. Then, in obedience to a call to serve our Lord in
His suffering members, he emerged from his retreat. During the rest of
his life he went about tending the sick and seeking out the destitute
poor to whom he gave the greater portion of his own food and the
clothes off his back. To the mortification of his family he would
sally forth in a garment made of sacking and old pieces. Regarding
himself as the vilest of creatures he used odd means of attracting the
contempt of his fellow men.

Once on Passion Sunday he went to the cathedral with a rope tied round
his neck, like a criminal, but, as he knelt in prayer in the Lady
chapel he fell into an ecstasy which lasted many hours, and from which
he was roused with difficulty. On another occasion, when it was
bitterly cold, he made his way to the market-place and spent the day
amid a crowd of beggars and rogues, exposed to public derision, until
at last, more dead than alive, he was discovered and rescued by his
parents. In spite of all his efforts, John came to be venerated in his
own city as a holy man who was also a prophet and a wonder-worker, and
when, four years before his death, he went to Rome for the jubilee
with two fellow tertiaries, he was saluted by a complete stranger as
"the saint from Urbino".

There is a life by a contemporary, which has been printed in the Acta
Sanctorum, June, vol. i; but see also the Acta Ordinis Fratrum Minorum
for 1918 and 1919, and Wadding, Annales Ord. Min., vol. vi, pp. 38-42.
The cultus of Bl. John Pelingotto was confirmed in 1918. The official
decree, which contains a biographical summary, will be found in the
Acta Apostolicae Sedis, vol. x (1918), pp. 513-516.


Bible Quote:
"But when the kindness and love of God our Savior for humanity were
revealed, it was not because of any upright actions we had done
ourselves; it was for no reason except his own faithful love that he
saved us, by means of the cleansing water of rebirth and renewal in
the Holy Spirit, which he has so generously poured over us through
Jesus Christ our Savior; so that, justified by his grace, we should
become heirs in hope of eternal life. This is doctrine that you can
rely on." [Titus 3:4-8]

Saint Quote:
“Do not be surprised that you fall every day; do not give up, but
stand your ground courageously. And assuredly, the angel who guards
you will honour your patience.”
--Saint John Climacus

Bible Quote:
"Let us keep firm in the hope we profess, because the one who made the
promise is trustworthy. Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a
response in love and good works." [Hebrews 10:23-24]


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PRAYER IN PRAISE OF THE TRINITY

I venerate and glorify you,
O Most Blessed Trinity,
in union with the ineffable glory
with which God the Father,
in His omnipotence,
honours the Holy Spirit forever.

I magnify and bless you,
O Most Blessed Trinity,
in union with that most reverent glory
with which God the Son,
in His unsearchable wisdom,
glorifies the Father and the Holy Spirit forever.

I adore and extol you,
O Most Blessed Trinity
in union with that most adequate and befitting glory
with which the Holy Spirit,
in his unchangeable goodness
extolls the Father and the Son forever.

Amen.