 clickable | | The Wisdom Path of God Many bosses, ministers, coaches and teachers tell a young man how to get out of his problems and to be "normal" again. A true mentor or initiator guides a young man into his problems and through them, which will always feel a bit muddy and messy, but also wet and wild and wise. The mentor will lead a man to The Center, and to his own center, but by circuitous paths, using even his two steps backward to lead him three steps forward. It looks wild, but it is really the wisdom path of God. —from the book From Wild Man to Wise Man: Reflections on Male Spirituality by Richard Rohr, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament of the Eucharist, I am sure that the thought of Christ's love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude."
— St. Angela of Foligno † Meditation of the Day
"[Purity of intention] which is intimately connected with zeal, enables us to forget ourselves in all things, and to seek first the glory of God and the accomplishment of His good pleasure, persuaded that the more we sacrifice our own interests in His service, the greater advantage and blessing we shall reap. For this reason we must examine the motives of all our actions, that we may labor purely for God, since nothing is more subtle than self-love, which insinuates itself into every work, unless we maintain a constant guard. ... The practice of the moral virtues and the most severe mortifications are meritorious before God only inasmuch as they are animated by His Divine Spirit. The temple of Jerusalem contained nothing which was not either of gold or covered with gold. It is no less fitting that in our souls, the living temples of the Divinity, there should be nothing that is not charity or animated by it. Let us bear in mind that God values the intention more than the action, and that the simplest work becomes noble when performed with a noble intention, while the greatest will be of little value if performed from an indifferent motive. By endeavoring to acquire this purity of intention we shall follow the example and counsel of Our Saviour, who tells us to love as He has loved – that is, purely and disinterestedly. Happy is he who imitates this noblest characteristic of the divine love. Rapid will be his growth in the likeness of God, and consequently in His love, for resemblance usually begets love. Let us rid ourselves of human respect, and, keeping God ever before our eyes, let us not suffer selfish or worldly motives to mar the merit of our good works and rob us of their reward, which is Heaven and the possession of God Himself."
— Venerable Louis Of Grenada, p. 406
An Excerpt From
Venerable Louis Of Grenada † Verse of the Day
"Who can command and have it done, if the Lord has not ordained it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High that good and bad come? Why should any who draw breath complain about the punishment of their sins? Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the Lord. Let us lift up our hearts as well as our hands to God in heaven."
Lamentations 3:37-41 |  click to read more | | Saint Paulinus of Nola (354 – June 22, 431) Anyone who is praised in the letters of six or seven saints undoubtedly must be of extraordinary character. Such a person was Paulinus of Nola, correspondent and friend of Saints Augustine, Jerome, Melania, Martin, Gregory the Great, and Ambrose. Born near Bordeaux, he was the son of the Roman prefect of Gaul, who had extensive property in both Gaul and Italy. Paulinus became a distinguished lawyer, holding several public offices in the Roman Empire. With his Spanish wife, Therasia, he retired at an early age to a life of cultured leisure. The two were baptized by the saintly bishop of Bordeaux and moved to Therasia's estate in Spain. After many childless years, they had a son who died a week after birth. This occasioned their beginning a life of great austerity and charity, giving away most of their Spanish property. Possibly as a result of this great example, Paulinus was rather unexpectedly ordained a priest at Christmas by the bishop of Barcelona. He and his wife then moved to Nola, near Naples. He had a great love for Saint Felix of Nola, and spent much effort in promoting devotion to this saint. Paulinus gave away most of his remaining property—to the consternation of his relatives—and continued his work for the poor. Supporting a host of debtors, the homeless and other needy people, he lived a monastic life in another part of his home. By popular demand he was made bishop of Nola and guided that diocese for 21 years. Paulinus' last years were saddened by the invasion of the Huns. Among his few writings is the earliest extant Christian wedding song. His Liturgical Feast Day is June 22.
Reflection Many of us are tempted to "retire" early in life, after an initial burst of energy. Devotion to Christ and his work is waiting to be done all around us. Paulinus' life had scarcely begun when he thought it was over, as he took his ease on that estate in Spain. "Man proposes, but God disposes." | Thursday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Cor 11:1-11 Brothers and sisters:
If only you would put up with a little foolishness from me!
Please put up with me.
For I am jealous of you with the jealousy of God,
since I betrothed you to one husband
to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning,
your thoughts may be corrupted
from a sincere and pure commitment to Christ.
For if someone comes and preaches another Jesus than the one we preached,
or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received
or a different gospel from the one you accepted,
you put up with it well enough.
For I think that I am not in any way inferior to these "superapostles."
Even if I am untrained in speaking, I am not so in knowledge;
in every way we have made this plain to you in all things. Did I make a mistake when I humbled myself so that you might be exalted,
because I preached the Gospel of God to you without charge?
I plundered other churches by accepting from them
in order to minister to you.
And when I was with you and in need, I did not burden anyone,
for the brothers who came from Macedonia
supplied my needs.
So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way.
By the truth of Christ in me,
this boast of mine shall not be silenced
in the regions of Achaia.
And why? Because I do not love you?
God knows I do! Responsorial Psalm Ps 111:1b-2, 3-4, 7-8 R.(7a) Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Majesty and glory are his work,
and his justice endures forever.
He has won renown for his wondrous deeds;
gracious and merciful is the LORD.
R. Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
sure are all his precepts,
Reliable forever and ever,
wrought in truth and equity.
R. Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia Rom 8:15bc R. Alleluia, alleluia.
You have received a spirit of adoption as sons
through which we cry: Abba! Father!
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mt 6:7-15 Jesus said to his disciples:
"In praying, do not babble like the pagans,
who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them.
Your Father knows what you need before you ask him. "This is how you are to pray: 'Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy Kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.' "If you forgive others their transgressions,
your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others,
neither will your Father forgive your transgressions."
| Meditation: Matthew 6:7-15 11th Week in Ordinary Time If you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions. (Matthew 6:15) For hiding Jews in her home during World War II, Corrie ten Boom was imprisoned in the infamous Ravensbruck concentration camp. She survived the Holocaust, and after the war, she traveled all over Europe speaking about the need for forgiveness and reconciliation. At one such event, she recognized one of the Ravensbruck prison guards. He said to her, "I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. . . . Will you forgive me?" Corrie struggled to raise her hand to meet his, but she felt only coldness in her heart. So she prayed, "Jesus, help me," and then "woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me." Suddenly she felt a current race down her arm and into their joined hands. "Then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. 'I forgive you, brother!' I cried. 'With all my heart!' . . . I had never known God's love so intensely as I did then. "And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world's healing hinges, but on his. When he tells us to love our enemies, he gives, along with the command, the love itself." None of us find it easy to forgive—which is why Jesus' words in today's Gospel are so challenging. But Corrie ten Boom's openness to God's grace in that moment didn't come out of the blue. Her heart had been prepared through many years of prayerfully following the Lord. Her habitual practice of seeking God had convinced her that, even if it was hard to do, she needed to speak those words of forgiveness. God wants to give you the gift of forgiveness as well. Day in, day out, as you draw close to him, he can cultivate the soil of your heart, making you more and more open to his grace. Then, when the moment appears, forgiveness will come, just as it did for Corrie ten Boom. "Jesus, give me the grace and love I need to forgive as you have forgiven me." 2 Corinthians 11:1-11
Psalm 111:1-4, 7-8 |  clickable | Read this well: Your children are not stupid. They know very well if you take your faith seriously or if you are picking and choosing which parts of the Faith or the moral law to obey and they will interpret that to mean that they can, too.
—Leila Miller
from Raising Chaste Catholic Men | my2cents:
"Brothers and sisters: If only you would put up with a little foolishness from me! Please put up with me."
Whatever the situation Saint Paul was going through, we have to know that the Holy Word fits us today, the forever now.
Put up with me. With my slip up of words.
Put up with me. With my mistakes.
Put up with me. Because I still want to be one with you.
When it comes to family, there are all sorts of people in it. Some are hardened sinners. Some are fragile. Some are wounded. Some seem uninterested. Put up with me. We are in this together and God knows we need each other...every single one of us! | Let us pray: "I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart in the company and assembly of the just. Great are the works of the LORD, exquisite in all their delights. Your works, O Lord, are justice and truth."
People have various opinions on Heaven. Some people will think of it as a place to relax as if one great big vacation. Not me. I can only compare it to Holy Mass. Where there, we will eternally give thanks, all together finally, and from there await the Master's word to go out and evangelize. And it all begins with thanksgiving. | Our Lord comes from Heaven and says ""In praying, do not babble like the pagans".
Protestants think Catholics babble in rosaries and so forth. I think some protestants babble too much when they pray themselves. God knows the interior position of our prayer. He knows sincerity. And this is why God comes. He destroys the tower of Babylon where people just babbled on and on and He had to silence them in confusion. They thought they were so great and He had to remind them that they were so little. So today, let us remember the Words and the Way He taught us to pray....His very own prayer made up of so many prayers, all simplified just like the code of conduct commandments, follow them to be happy, and joyful and one in Him. | OUR Father.
Who is in Heaven.
Holy, let us make Holy Thy Most Blessed name.
Let us make your light, your Kingdom come by making your will be known and accomplished through each one of us, as a Holy and pure vessel.
Give us, Holy Father, today, daily bread, You Jesus, in the Eucharist.
And please Lord, forgive us, we sin so much, we are nothing without you.
Forgive us as we forgive, teach us to be mercy like you are Mercy itself.
And Lord, do not let us fall into temptation, send your angels and Holy Spirit among us to deliver us from evil, and take us to you in Heaven forever AMEN |  hear it read | adrian Random Bible Verse1
Joshua 1:8 (Listen) 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Thank You Jesus | |
No comments:
Post a Comment