†Quote of the Day
"Faith is a habit of the mind whereby eternal life is begun in us, making the intellect assent to what is non-apparent."
–St. Thomas Aquinas †Today's Meditation
"Very pleasing to Me, dearest daughter, is the willing desire to bear every pain and fatigue, even unto death, for the salvation of souls, for the more the soul endures, the more she shows that she loves Me; loving Me she comes to know more of My truth, and the more she knows, the more pain and intolerable grief she feels at the offenses committed against me."
—God to St. Catherine of Siena in the book, Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena, p. 9 An Excerpt From
Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena †Daily Verse
"Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord! Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways!"
–Psalm 119:1-3 |  click to read more | | Bl. Antonia Mesina Blessed Antonia Mesina (1919-1935) was one of ten children born to a poor family on the island of Sardinia in Italy. Being the second oldest child, she had to leave school to help with the family chores after her mother became bedridden, a task which she accepted with obedience, humility, and joy. Antonia's mother referred to her daughter as "the flower of my life." Antonia was also active in her parish, joining the Young Women of Catholic Action organization at the age of ten and encouraging others to do the same. On May 17, 1935, while in the forest with a friend gathering firewood, Antonia was assaulted by a teenage boy who attempted to rape her. Her friend ran for help while Antonia bravely defended herself against her attacker. The young man, unable to achieve his goal due to her continuous resistance, brutally attacked Antonia with dozens of blows with a rock. By the time help arrived, it was too late. Antonia died at the age of sixteen. The entire town accompanied her body to the site of her burial. She is considered a martyr of sexual purity, and was beatified by Pope St. John Paul II in 1987. Her story has been likened to that of St. Maria Goretti. Blessed Antonia Messina is the patron of rape victims. Her feast day is May 17th. | Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter Reading 1 Acts 17:15, 22—18:1 After Paul's escorts had taken him to Athens,
they came away with instructions for Silas and Timothy
to join him as soon as possible. Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said:
"You Athenians, I see that in every respect
you are very religious.
For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines,
I even discovered an altar inscribed, 'To an Unknown God.'
What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.
The God who made the world and all that is in it,
the Lord of heaven and earth,
does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands,
nor is he served by human hands because he needs anything.
Rather it is he who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.
He made from one the whole human race
to dwell on the entire surface of the earth,
and he fixed the ordered seasons and the boundaries of their regions,
so that people might seek God,
even perhaps grope for him and find him,
though indeed he is not far from any one of us.
For 'In him we live and move and have our being,'
as even some of your poets have said,
'For we too are his offspring.'
Since therefore we are the offspring of God,
we ought not to think that the divinity is like an image
fashioned from gold, silver, or stone by human art and imagination.
God has overlooked the times of ignorance,
but now he demands that all people everywhere repent
because he has established a day on which he will 'judge the world
with justice' through a man he has appointed,
and he has provided confirmation for all
by raising him from the dead." When they heard about resurrection of the dead,
some began to scoff, but others said,
"We should like to hear you on this some other time."
And so Paul left them.
But some did join him, and became believers.
Among them were Dionysius,
a member of the Court of the Areopagus,
a woman named Damaris, and others with them. After this he left Athens and went to Corinth. Responsorial Psalm Ps 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14 R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all you his angels;
praise him, all you his hosts.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Let the kings of the earth and all peoples,
the princes and all the judges of the earth,
Young men too, and maidens,
old men and boys.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
His majesty is above earth and heaven.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has lifted up the horn of his people;
Be this his praise from all his faithful ones,
from the children of Israel, the people close to him.
Alleluia.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia Jn 14:16 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I will ask the Father
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you always.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 16:12-15 Jesus said to his disciples:
"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you."
| Daily Meditation: John 16:12-15 When he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth. (John 16:13) The time had come for Jesus to depart, and he wanted to reassure his disciples that he wasn't leaving them alone. He would send the Holy Spirit, who would guide them to all truth (John 16:13). It was an amazing promise—and it's meant for us as well! So what are some of the truths that the Spirit reveals to us? The Holy Spirit reveals God's personal love to us. The words "God loves you" can fall flat unless we have some experience of his love, which only the Holy Spirit can provide. He opens our eyes to all the ways God shows his love to us each day. And when we pray, the Spirit lifts us into the Father's presence and tells us how precious we are to him. The Holy Spirit opens up the Scriptures. Much like a collection of attic items we've inherited, the Scriptures may at first have little personal meaning for us. But when a beloved relative explains the story of each item one by one, they come to life. In the same way, when the Holy Spirit opens the Scriptures to us, they become treasures that speak deeply to our hearts. The Holy Spirit opens our eyes to see our neighbors as brothers and sisters in Christ. He brings us together as one family and moves us to share our joys with one another and carry each other's burdens. And when our hearts are hardened by sin or pain or anger, the Holy Spirit softens them so that we can forgive as the Lord has forgiven us. The Holy Spirit reveals our eternal destiny. Under his guidance, we begin to see that completing our journey in this life is only the beginning. All that is ours in Christ has its source in heaven, and one day we will join the Lord there and live with him forever. What a day that will be! Today, reflect on one of these truths. Let the Spirit show you how you were made for love or unity or eternity. Allow him to speak to you through the Scriptures. That's what he came to do, so go ahead and ask! "Holy Spirit, thank you for revealing God's truths to me each and every day." Acts 17:15, 22–18:1
Psalm 148:1-2, 11-14 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
"God has overlooked the times of ignorance,
but now he demands that all people everywhere repent because he has established a day on which he will 'judge the world with justice' through a man he has appointed, and he has provided confirmation for all by raising him from the dead."
End of first Scripture. It would seem as most people are just going through the motions, just kind of lackadaisical at times, meaning in a sense, careless, and this is dangerous. Te be careless means is two words in one, to "care less". So let me divert our attention towards the flow of all energies and life again...it is our Lord and our God from which all things are created. His source is mind boggling. But forget about all energies and sources for a moment. Right now, think about the life you are living. There was a pastor that wrote a "Purpose Driven Life" and many churches popped up out of it, I think Harvest Church. But the success was in of itself mostly due to the very title of the book, for all those seeking meaning, and purpose in life.
Well, look no further! Even the pastor that wrote the book is very fond of the source, Christ and the Church Christ founded, the Catholic Church. With all the fastings, and prayers, and even the focus of all things, of which we are concentrated on supremely, Christ our Savior. | We pray today:
" Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all you his angels;
praise him, all you his hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory." There are some prayers that involve these Psalms and when prayed as a group that responds back and forth, like in a Cursillo, it sounds amazing. But the sounds record themselves into the heart. I remember the sounds, and it affects me. This is how music works too, it can move a soul, for better or for worse. Like images, they can make a huge difference for better or worse. But when the Psalms begin talking about all things praising the Lord, even creatures in the sea and all things in the sky, it gets really deep, really quick. All things are designed to give greater Glory, that is, to speak volumes of our Father God, the eternal source, who desires the deepest of fruit from the heart. | In the Gospel today we heard: "I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth....
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you."
Says our Lord our Savior and our God. Did you get what He said? Even the Holy Spirit is to Glorify God! Do you want any more purpose? You were designed to glorify God. In my inmost being, I can feel that I am called to glorify God with all my soul. But things hold me back, I can't raise my arms to the sky and praise God very easy. It is very awkward. I can't bring myself to enough humility to give Glory to God in every encounter with every person I meet. What do I mean? How often do I bring God into every relationship? How often do I want to encounter God in every relationship? What if He speaks through every single person?
Because, He can. And more often than I'd like to admit, He does. He does speak through the negative, through the positive, and sometimes so quietly, that you have to stop everything you are doing, hit your knees, and listen to what He is saying so subtly and direct to the heart.
Now, that we have diverted our attention to Him, let us then invoke The Holy Spirit. | ...†....
Let's pray:
Lord, Holy Spirit, I'm asking Thee to enter my heart, dwell inside of me, let Love live, let God live, let the light of the Holy Trinity shine through me and thus, the very Body of Christ, both now and forever! | Random Bible Verse 1
Psalm 23:1
The Lord Is My Shepherd
A Psalm of David. 23 "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want." | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
