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| The Mercy of God |  |
For pity's sake, I beseech you by all that you hold sacred not to wrong him by entertaining the slightest suspicion that he has abandoned you even for a single moment. This is really one of the most diabolical temptations which you must drive far from you as soon as you are aware of it. | | |
St. Bridget
(1303?-1373)
  From age seven on, Bridget had visions of Christ crucified. Her visions formed the basis for her activity—always with the emphasis on charity rather than spiritual favors. She lived her married life in the court of the Swedish king Magnus II. Mother of eight children (the second eldest was St. Catherine of Sweden), she lived the strict life of a penitent after her husband's death. Bridget constantly strove to exert her good influence over Magnus; while never fully reforming, he did give her land and buildings to found a monastery for men and women. This group eventually expanded into an Order known as the Bridgetines (still in existence). In 1350, a year of jubilee, Bridget braved a plague-stricken Europe to make a pilgrimage to Rome. Although she never returned to Sweden, her years in Rome were far from happy, being hounded by debts and by opposition to her work against Church abuses. A final pilgrimage to the Holy Land, marred by shipwreck and the death of her son, Charles, eventually led to her death in 1373. In 1999, she, Saints Catherine of Siena (April 29) and Teresa Benedicts of the Cross (Edith Stein, August 9) were named co-patronesses of Europe.
Despite the hardships of life and wayward children (not all became saints), Margery Kempe of Lynn says Bridget was "kind and meek to every creature" and "she had a laughing face."
Europe
Daily Prayer - 2015-07-23 Presence "I stand at the door and knock," says the Lord.
What a wonderful privilege
that the Lord of all creation desires to come to me.
I welcome His presence. Freedom By God's grace I was born to live in freedom.
Free to enjoy the pleasures He created for me.
Dear Lord, grant that I may live as You intended,
with complete confidence in Your Loving care. Consciousness In the presence of my loving Creator,
I look honestly at my feelings over the last day,
the highs, the lows and the level ground.
Can I see where the Lord has been present? The Word of God In the third month after their departure from the land of Egypt,
on its first day, the children of Israel came to the desert of Sinai.
After the journey from Rephidim to the desert of Sinai,
they pitched camp.
While Israel was encamped here in front of the mountain,
the LORD told Moses,
"I am coming to you in a dense cloud,
so that when the people hear me speaking with you,
they may always have faith in you also."
When Moses, then, had reported to the LORD the response of the people,
the LORD added, "Go to the people
and have them sanctify themselves today and tomorrow.
Make them wash their garments and be ready for the third day;
for on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai
before the eyes of all the people."
On the morning of the third day
there were peals of thunder and lightning,
and a heavy cloud over the mountain,
and a very loud trumpet blast,
so that all the people in the camp trembled.
But Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God,
and they stationed themselves at the foot of the mountain.
Mount Sinai was all wrapped in smoke,
for the LORD came down upon it in fire.
The smoke rose from it as though from a furnace,
and the whole mountain trembled violently.
The trumpet blast grew louder and louder, while Moses was speaking
and God answering him with thunder.
When the LORD came down to the top of Mount Sinai,
he summoned Moses to the top of the mountain. R. (52b) Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever;
And blessed is your holy and glorious name,
praiseworthy and exalted above all for all ages."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the temple of your holy glory,
praiseworthy and glorious above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you on the throne of your Kingdom,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you who look into the depths
from your throne upon the cherubim,
praiseworthy and exalted above all forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever!
"Blessed are you in the firmament of heaven,
praiseworthy and glorious forever."
R. Glory and praise for ever! R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. The disciples approached Jesus and said,
"Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?"
He said to them in reply,
"Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because
they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:
You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted
and I heal them.
"But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear.
Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people
longed to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it." Some thoughts on today's scripture - Jesus spoke in parables so that the meaning of his teaching could take root in the lives of those he taught as the message seemed to have escaped from some of them. He hoped that his hearers would receive the message of the kingdom of God anew in their hearts by reflecting on the images he presented.
- Are there times when I need to take a step back from the busyness of my life in order to attune myself to the message of Jesus? I ask him now to fill me with a greater awareness of his presence so that I can accept the gifts of love, joy and peace which he offers me.
Conversation What feelings are rising in me as I pray and reflect on God's Word?
I imagine Jesus himself sitting or standing near me and open my heart to him. Conclusion I thank God for these few moments we have spent alone together and for any insights I may have been given concerning the text.
 Meditation: Exodus 19:1-2, 9-11, 16-20 Subscriber? Login to view archives. Saint Bridget, Religious (Optional Memorial) Moses led the people out of the camp to meet God. (Exodus 19:17) And so it was that fifty days after the first Passover, the Hebrews met God at the foot of a mountain. It wasn't their first introduction, of course. They had seen him display his might through signs and wonders as he delivered them from the grip of Pharaoh. But this time, they were meeting him in a new way. They were alone with their Redeemer. As they entered into the covenant, God revealed his identity and character to them in a new way and in greater depth. If you were to read through the whole book of Exodus in one sitting, you would see the Israelites meeting God in a new way in almost every chapter—as savior, healer, provider, lawgiver, judge, and so much more. What a wonderful illustration of our own personal journey of discipleship! God's glory, his love, his majesty, and his mercy are so deep that we could never possibly tire of meeting him—not even through all of eternity! That's because with each encounter, we discover a new facet of who he is, or we dive deeper into a facet we have already seen. Our God is so good and wondrous that each little piece we see makes us yearn for another glimpse. How have you met God in the past? Like the Israelites in today's reading, maybe you have beheld some of his splendor, maybe while stargazing. But did you know that you can also speak with him face-to-face in your prayer time, as a friend? Later in the Book of Exodus, we see that God would enter the tent of meeting to present himself to his friend, Moses (Exodus 33:11). What an awesome foreshadowing of Mass, where the Lord presents himself to you in the Eucharist, in the Scriptures, through the minister, and in the midst of his people! Maybe you have met God as a mountain of refuge, when you were full of anxiety. What a blessing to climb the stairway to his throne, and from your perch with him, look down on the obstacles that once seemed so formidable! Clearly, there's an infinite number of ways to encounter God. So how will you meet him today? "Lord, give me the courage to step out of the camp, out of my comfort zone, to discover you in a new way today." (Psalm) Daniel 3:52-56
Matthew 13:10-17
my2cents:
Allow me to translate today's 5minutos:
"Don't let there be one or another "intellect" that sees these words of Jesus, something like a "challenge" to the poor, those whose little is taken away. But these words refer more to the faith, to the acceptance of the message of Jesus in His Gospel, to the embracing of the Kingdom in every Christian. "Because they look and do not see and hear but do not hear" (Mt.13:13). This is the answer. The man sees and hears the words of Jesus, His Kingdom now present in Him, His miracles, etc., but "makes as if they don't hear nor hears"; that is to say, , does not obey Jesus, wants to live always off little "miracles", they want a God at their "liking", someone they can manipulate, they want it to only rain on their "little field"; in exchange, they show themselves as "deaf", "blind", "paralyzed" and "mute, and even dead when it comes to helping their fellow person (neighbor): "it's not my turn", or "let the government take care of them", or "they smell bad", or "they deserve it and he should've deserved worse", etc. To the one who thinks like this, so poor that "they don't have anything" but these "dark intentions and thoughts" will be taken away even that, or better said will get "a soup of their own chocolate'. But, in contrast, the one who lets themselves be penetrated by the Word of God and offers Him an open heart, available, fertile, and available to eliminate the "rocks and thorns" that still trip up their communion with God, loves God and their fellow (neighbor) with the same application that God inspires with; then their love grows abundantly ever more in the measure that it shares generously. Think then, if the "seed" of the Word of God has found a fertile land in your heart, or if it is still empty, poor, hard and full of thorns of your selfishnesses"
Today's 1st Holy Scripture it is made known that God is made known so that we may believe...so that we may obey. Moses brings the people to God. Two things happen, you follow and obey, or go your own way. You go your own way to your dismay, because any other way than His leads to death and destruction even if you don't see it happening before your own eyes. This is the seriousness of the situation of you and your so called sin, because it is never personal, it is always all encompassing and affects the people, even the innocent. Just because you text and drive and wind up killing an innocent family, it don't mean God is cruel, it means you should've listened. Such is the situation and it is getting critical with the dismantling of life and family and family life. Let this be a prophecy, for us to appreciate life and family...or it will be taken away. Is that even possible? Yes, don't text and drive! Within the last couple of weeks, I have been led to take 2 men individually and privately to pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Like Moses, I take people to God. Two things can happen when we leave, either they begin anew, and obey, or still go their own way. It is all on the faith. Right now, all I can do is continue to pray for them as they go their way.
Let us continue with the Psalms that lead us on: " "Blessed are you who look into the depths from your throne upon the cherubim, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever." and "Glory and Praise forever". I often find myself in Church in different groups doing different things but all for the same Lord. There, I find intelligent business owners, and in intimate moments I find myself with recovering alcoholics and drug addicts. Notice though, I find myself more intimately connected with the poor. Poor financially? Nope, that's not always the case although that is an obvious case. But in the case of the poor in spirit, it is a whole new dilemma. Because often the poor in finance are more faithful, but not always. The case then, is for God to be praised. Those who are rich, that is, full of themselves and their own happiness, they don't need God. For the poor that live in a despondent world, a lost world, wondering aimless with no direction, seeking happiness in earthly things...God is inviting you to give praise, to give glory, to give thanks, to give to the needy, because the only way to fill the void is to start filling, like the story of the man that approached the little boy on the beach as the boy was throwing starfish back into the ocean, and the man asked "what are you doing?" and the boy said "saving the starfish", the man replies "you can't save them look how the ocean puts them out here by the thousands...you can't make a difference" and the boy reached down, grabbed another one and said "I just made a big difference to that one!". And this is the case of our Lord in our lives, making a big difference in one life. Glory and praise forever!
In comes our Lord. He says " This is why I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand." He speaks in a way we all can understand, but some will not understand. Do you realize/understand, that God is relaying this message to YOU. It's not for your friend or relative right now. The message is for YOU. Do you understand that God is reaching into your soul right now? Do you understand that a parable is a way to get closer to God? Do you understand that a parable puts things in a way that you are offered the very substance of God? Because the people that saw God in the clouds of thunder, smoke, and trumpet blasts could very well believe in Him or disbelieve "ahh its all smoke and mirrors, just a volcanic erruption causing static charge in the atmosphere". HAAAH! I bet some of you thought about that already, you "intelligent" ones. For the simple and open hearted this act of God meant salvation and faith is upon us. For the so called "intelligent" it means NOTHING. It means there is no hope, or no God even! Time to get our big heads out of the way, and this means the ego. LOL isn't it amazing? I mean, why would God "allow" some to believe and some not to believe? Is that bad? Then the question of living in a free world is at stake. Your decisions do make a difference, like the little boy on the ocean. He believed he was making a difference ( AND HE WAS), but the "intelligent" thought it was all for not! How can I "make you believe"? For starters, realize that the king of lies is in the world and working really hard feeding on weaknesses of human souls. Realize that the devil has made the god of the atheists the "spaghetti monster", that is to say, he fools saying it is all made up! LOL, it is NOT! History is not ficiton! Yet, the devil wants you to believe the past is nonsense! WHAT?? The devil wants you to doubt; doubt hope, doubt light, doubt salvation! And what's worse? The devil's latest heresy is "make up your own god and that is the way and the truth!" AAHH! That's crazy! Yet, this is the lies the people are choosing to believe. So today, it has been laid out before your eyes...before possibly your heart. Can God make a difference (of course). Question is then, can you make a difference? (Of course we can, because with God, all things are possible!)
 adrian
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