 clickable | | Confidence Leads to Love Oh! How I would like to be able to make you understand what I feel! It is confidence and nothing but confidence that must lead us to Love…Does not fear lead to justice? Since we see the way, let us run together. Yes, I feel it, Jesus gives to us the same graces, He wills to give us His heaven gratuitously…I am sure that God would not give you the desire to be POSSESSED by Him, by His Merciful Love if He were not reserving that favor for you…or rather He has already given it to you, since you have given yourself to Him, since you desire to be consumed by Him, and since God never gives desires that He cannot realize. —From a letter to Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart (one of Thérèse's novices) | September 1896 —from the book The Way of Simple Love: Inspiring Words from Therese of Lisieux by Father Gary Caster |  MorningOffering.com | † Saint Quote
"All the science of the Saints is included in these two things: To do, and to suffer. And whoever has done these two things best, has made himself most saintly."
— Saint Francis de Sales † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"By accepting the sufferings 'offered' by life and allowed by God for our progress and purification, we spare ourselves much harder ones. We need to develop this kind of realism and, once and for all, stop dreaming of a life without suffering or conflict. That is the life of heaven, not earth. We must take up our cross and follow Christ courageously every day; the bitterness of that cross will sooner or later be transformed into sweetness."
— Fr. Jacques Philippe, p. 49
AN EXCERPT FROM
Interior Freedom † VERSE OF THE DAY
Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me.
John 14:23-24 |  click to read more | | ST. VINCENT DE PAUL St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660) was born in France to a peasant farming family. As a child he grew up herding sheep, and showed such an aptitude for his studies that his father sold the family oxen to fund his seminary education. After his ordination in 1600, St. Vincent worked in Toulouse as a tutor to pay for his doctorate. In 1605, while traveling by sea, he was captured by Turkish pirates. He was taken to Tunis in Africa and sold into slavery four times before escaping in 1607 along with his master, whom he had coverted to the faith. St. Vincent then continued his studies in Rome, and afterwards returned to France. He served as a parish priest and ministered to the nobility; however, two life-changing encounters with destitute people inspired him to begin work among the poor and marginalized. He gathered the wealthy women of his parish to collect funds for missionary projects. From this group came the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul. He also founded an Order of priests, the Vincentians, who, during a time of general laxity and ignorance among the clergy, devoted themselves to the Evangelical Councils while serving in small towns and villages. He committed himself to the education of priests and conducted many retreats for their spiritual formation. He also ministered to convicts suffering deplorable conditions in prison, and won many to the faith in addition to building them a hospital. St. Vincent renewed the faith of France during a time of spiritual crisis. For this he was named the patron of charitable works. He is also the patron of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, an organization dedicated to the service of the poor, now working in 132 countries. His feast day is September 27th. Reflection The Church is for all God's children, rich and poor, peasants and scholars, the sophisticated and the simple. But obviously the greatest concern of the Church must be for those who need the most help—those made helpless by sickness, poverty, ignorance, or cruelty. Vincent de Paul is a particularly appropriate patron for all Christians today, when hunger has become starvation, and the high living of the rich stands in more and more glaring contrast to the physical and moral degradation in which many of God's children are forced to live.
Saint Vincent de Paul is the Patron Saint of: Charitable Societies | Memorial of Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest
Lectionary: 453
Reading 1 Hg 2:1-9 In the second year of King Darius,
on the twenty-first day of the seventh month,
the word of the LORD came through the prophet Haggai:
Tell this to the governor of Judah,
Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel,
and to the high priest Joshua, son of Jehozadak,
and to the remnant of the people: Who is left among you
that saw this house in its former glory?
And how do you see it now?
Does it not seem like nothing in your eyes?
But now take courage, Zerubbabel, says the LORD,
and take courage, Joshua, high priest, son of Jehozadak,
And take courage, all you people of the land,
says the LORD, and work!
For I am with you, says the LORD of hosts.
This is the pact that I made with you
when you came out of Egypt,
And my spirit continues in your midst;
do not fear!
For thus says the LORD of hosts:
One moment yet, a little while,
and I will shake the heavens and the earth,
the sea and the dry land.
I will shake all the nations,
and the treasures of all the nations will come in,
And I will fill this house with glory,
says the LORD of hosts.
Mine is the silver and mine the gold,
says the LORD of hosts.
Greater will be the future glory of this house
than the former, says the LORD of hosts;
And in this place I will give you peace,
says the LORD of hosts! Responsorial Psalm Ps 43:1, 2, 3, 4 R.(5) Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Do me justice, O God, and fight my fight
against a faithless people;
from the deceitful and impious man rescue me.
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
For you, O God, are my strength.
Why do you keep me so far away?
Why must I go about in mourning,
with the enemy oppressing me?
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Send forth your light and your fidelity;
they shall lead me on
And bring me to your holy mountain,
to your dwelling place.
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God.
Then will I go in to the altar of God,
the God of my gladness and joy;
Then will I give you thanks upon the harp,
O God, my God!
R. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God. Alleluia Mk 10:45 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man came to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 9:18-22 Once when Jesus was praying in solitude,
and the disciples were with him,
he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"
They said in reply, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah;
still others, 'One of the ancient prophets has arisen.'"
Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Peter said in reply, "The Christ of God."
He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this to anyone. He said, "The Son of Man must suffer greatly
and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,
and be killed and on the third day be raised." | Catholic Meditations
Meditation: Luke 9:18-22 Saint Vincent de Paul, Priest (Memorial) Who do you say that I am? (Luke 9:20) At airports, at doctor's offices, when cashing a check—so often we are asked to produce our ID. We routinely present our driver's license or some other form of identification without a second thought. There it is: a card that says who you are. But you know that your identity doesn't really exist on a card. Your identity exists in the web of relationships that defines you and sustains you: your parents, your siblings, your close friends, and your children. All of them have helped shape you in ways that no single card could ever contain! When Jesus asks his disciples, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter replies, correctly, "The Christ" (Luke 9:20). But to what extent is he aware of the way in which being with Jesus has shaped his own identity? Peter and the others have been following Jesus for some time now, and he has made an indelible mark on them. He has reshaped them to the point that they are committed to following him even to his death. They may not be completely faithful to him, and they have much more to learn, but they have already been changed in dramatic ways. Who do you say that Jesus is? Just as it did for the first disciples, your answer will come from the kind of relationship you have with him. For example, if you say, "Jesus, you are Lord and Savior," then you'll do whatever he asks of you. If you say, "You are the way, the truth, and the life," then you'll be willing to follow him, even in dark times. If you say, "You are my friend," then you will trust him in every situation. Of course, all of these are absolute statements, and none of us can live them out perfectly. Neither could Peter when he gave his answer. But that's okay. When Jesus asks, "Who do you say that I am?" he is also issuing you an invitation: Stay close to me. Immerse yourself in my love. Spend time with my followers. Your identity will continue to change, and you'll become more and more faithful to me, just as Peter did. "Jesus, you are the Christ! Help me to find my true self in your love!" Haggai 2:1-9
Psalm 43:1-4 |  clickable | At every mass the God of the Universe, Jesus Christ, that which the universe cannot contain, humbles himself before us. He takes the form of bread & wine and he feeds us with himself.
—Fr. Larry Richards
from The Mass Explained | my2cents:
"Greater will be the future glory of this house than the former, says the LORD of hosts; And in this place I will give you peace, says the LORD of hosts!"
I wonder and pondered while reading this, if people heard this prophetic message and thought about the house they were trying to build...this temple, for the Lord? In the Catholic Bible, this 1st reading is called "Assurance of God's Prescence". In it we heard Him speak: "This is the commitment I made to you
when you came out of Egypt. My spirit remains in your midst;
do not fear!"
Ahh, millenia ago, our Lord said Do Not Fear. I AM here.
Building a temple where there is peace? Sounds like Heaven. Because on Earth, this world, it is a place hostile to His Peace! | Let us pray: "Do me justice, O God, and fight my fight against a faithless people; from the deceitful and impious man rescue me. Hope in God; I will praise him, my savior and my God."
Oh boy. First I had a problem with "Open My Eyes Lord" now this "Fight my fight ...". LOL. We sure are bossy, telling our Lord what to do right? But these prayers should be said with the correct position, of who I am before Him. To recognize our place before Him. And to recognize just who He is. The prayer is asking the Father, in context, for Divine Assistance. Clinging to Hope, which is who? | In the Holy Gospels, our Lord asked two questions. The first: a public opinion poll: "Who do the crowds say that I am?" Depends on which crowds you ask, right? Proper demographics, to get correct analytical data? He asked His followers for answers. People say John the Baptist; others, Elijah;
still others, 'One of the ancient prophets. They start backtracking, from most recent, to older, and older. They are like my students, they are kind of there but not quite there with the answer, until Peter goes for gold, to the oldest of old..."YOU ARE THE MESSIAH!" | That was Peter's answer to the 2nd question: "But who do you say that I am?". Jesus was pleased with the answer, our Lord was pleased.
"But who do you say that I am my child?"
Now it gets personal. Forget what public opinion says, let's hear your answer.
I was alluding to this in previous writings, and I know they are hard to understand, but just ask the Holy Spirit to intervene! Remember the rules of reading scripture to be illuminated:
P Pray before opening the bible. Take a deep breath.
R Read carefully, slowly
I Imagine yourself in the story.
M Meditate on the Holy Scriptures.
A Apply the readings to your life. Now that being said, let us go back to the question where God invites you, the reader, into a life with Him:
"But who do you say that I am?" EEEshh. I said before in writings, to be careful how you answer. Because if you say He is God, then what of it?
Now what? Now you will apply what you have heard to your life!
Application is necessary. Otherwise, it's like walking into church and walking out right away through a revolving door.
For now, the answer to the question remains in your heart.
"Who am I?". Who am I before God? God is calling us to Himself. A strange notion. Scientific theories about time and space are saying that just as the universe(s) began out of nothing, it will eventually go back to nothing. Mortally speaking, it is a grim picture, because they are saying you are nothing, in essence. But theologically speaking, it speaks volumes about our God. Wherever we came from, we are going back. And it will be more natural and more knowing and there will be no time factor to consider.
So what do you do when there is no time?
It means you are busy, usually right?
Everything I do revolves around time. I have a watch to tell me time, time to do the next thing. My phone tells me it is time to do the next thing. The clock in front of me is showing me the time. My computer is showing me the time. But what if God becomes the time Keeper, time itself? Consider your ways! Let us pray:
Your ways Oh Lord are Truth and light. _ Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will do it. 6He will bring forth your righteousness like the dawn, your justice like the noonday sun.…Ps37:5_ For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Is 55:8 Show me Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation;
On You I wait all the day. Ps25:4 |  hear it read | adrian Random Bible Verse 1
John 6:37 37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. Thank You Jesus | |
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