 clickable | | What Can We Learn from the Mystics? The mystics teach us that one who tries to know and love God sooner or later becomes aware that God is unknowable, but one can love God intimately despite God's ultimate unknowableness. With this awareness comes the further realization that all one's desire to know and love God has from the beginning been God's work and that, try as one may, two things are certain: You cannot find God who has already found you by running away from yourself, your own problems, your own unresolved fears; and secondly, everything you leave in order to respond to God's love is in the end redeemed, transformed and given back to you wholly new and in an unpossessive way. It is as if you have returned to the garden of paradise illumined and purified so that you can walk again with God in the earthly paradise God intended for you from the beginning. —from the book Mystics: Twelve Who Reveal God's Love by Murray Bodo, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | † Saint quote
"Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth—in a word, to know himself—so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves."
— Pope St. John Paul II † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"We live in a fallen world. We must therefore work out our destiny under the conditions created by sin. Did we but realize this truth, we would accept each of life's trying changes in the same spirit in which we accept the penance from the confessor. Were we truly convinced that our hope of pardon, and consequently our salvation, depends upon repentance, we would willingly undergo all the sufferings of life's warfare."
— John A. Kane, p. 81
AN EXCERPT FROM
How to Make a Good Confession † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful."
Hebrews 10:23 |  click to read more | | BLESSED JOHN HENRY NEWMAN Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman (1801–1890) was the eldest of six children born to a nominal Protestant family in London, England. As a child he loved reading the Scriptures, and experienced a conversion to Christianity at the age of 15. He became a brilliant academic, an extremely influential Oxford scholar, and an Anglican priest. He was a leader in what was called the "Oxford Movement" which argued for a revival of traditional religious practice in the Church of England. Once anti-Catholic in his religious sentiments, sentiments that were common in England, Newman was increasingly impacted by the Church Fathers and other Catholic writers. His theological views gradually aligned with the Catholic Church in opposition to Anglican doctrine. Through his continued study of Church history he became unable to remain a Protestant in good faith. He made the decision to convert to Catholicism in 1845, which exposed him to much ridicule in his academic and religious circles. Two years later he was ordained a Catholic priest in Rome, and was made Cardinal in 1879. John Henry Newman is remembered for his influential writings on theology and philosophy as well as his founding of the famous London Oratory. Newman wrote 40 books and 21,000 letters, some of which had profound influence on the Second Vatican Council, making him one of the most important theologians of his day. His most famous work is his Apologia in which he defends his conversion to the truths of the Catholic Church. His feast day is October 9th.
See More About This Saint > | Wednesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 463
Reading 1 Jon 4:1-11 Jonah was greatly displeased
and became angry that God did not carry out the evil
he threatened against Nineveh.
He prayed, "I beseech you, LORD,
is not this what I said while I was still in my own country?
This is why I fled at first to Tarshish.
I knew that you are a gracious and merciful God,
slow to anger, rich in clemency, loath to punish.
And now, LORD, please take my life from me;
for it is better for me to die than to live."
But the LORD asked, "Have you reason to be angry?" Jonah then left the city for a place to the east of it,
where he built himself a hut and waited under it in the shade,
to see what would happen to the city.
And when the LORD God provided a gourd plant
that grew up over Jonah's head,
giving shade that relieved him of any discomfort,
Jonah was very happy over the plant.
But the next morning at dawn
God sent a worm that attacked the plant,
so that it withered.
And when the sun arose, God sent a burning east wind;
and the sun beat upon Jonah's head till he became faint.
Then Jonah asked for death, saying,
"I would be better off dead than alive." But God said to Jonah,
"Have you reason to be angry over the plant?"
"I have reason to be angry," Jonah answered, "angry enough to die."
Then the LORD said,
"You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor
and which you did not raise;
it came up in one night and in one night it perished.
And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city,
in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons
who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left,
not to mention the many cattle?" Responsorial Psalm Ps 86:3-4, 5-6, 9-10 R.(15) Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
Have mercy on me, O Lord,
for to you I call all the day.
Gladden the soul of your servant,
for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving,
abounding in kindness to all who call upon you.
Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer
and attend to the sound of my pleading.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
All the nations you have made shall come
and worship you, O Lord,
and glorify your name.
For you are great, and you do wondrous deeds;
you alone are God.
R. Lord, you are merciful and gracious. 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 Lk 11:1-4 Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished,
one of his disciples said to him,
"Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples."
He said to them, "When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be your name,
your Kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread
and forgive us our sins
for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us,
and do not subject us to the final test." | Catholic Meditations
Meditation: Luke 11:1-4 Saint Denis, Bishop, and Companions, Martyrs (Optional Memorial) Teach us to pray. (Luke 11:1) It was a reasonable request. The disciples had seen Jesus in prayer numerous times. They had also seen him perform many powerful miracles and minister God's mercy to many people. Perhaps there was a link between the two, they must have thought. Maybe if we learned how to pray like him, we might just become more like him. If this is truly what they were thinking, they were right! What could possibly be more effective in changing our hearts to be more like Jesus' heart than opening ourselves to his Father and letting him shape us? We all know how hard it can be to imitate the Lord. We try, but temptation is too strong. We think we are following his example, but we discover that pride or fear or our all too human ways of thinking have turned us aside. I wish I could be more forgiving, we think, or more courageous or less cynical. Where can we turn? To God, who is always ready to help us. And that's exactly what Jesus did for his disciples. "When you pray, say: Father" (Luke 11:2). The first word of the Lord's Prayer—Father—is the most important. This familiar, intimate address tells us that our God is approachable, that he loves us, and that he is able to care for us and provide for us. And if God is our good and loving Father, then of course he wants to give us his grace! Of course he wants to help us become more like his only-begotten Son! Following Jesus in our prayer is the key to following him in our thoughts and actions. As we pattern our prayers on his way of prayer, we will begin to think like him. His desires will become our desires, and his priorities will become our priorities. So try using the Lord's prayer as an outline for building your own prayer. Recall the truths about God, your Father. Look forward to the coming of his kingdom. Commit yourself to doing his will. Try to be more forgiving so that you can find his mercy more readily. Eat your fill at the Lord's table. Seek his protection from the evil one. Make these your priorities in prayer, and you'll find yourself thinking and acting more like Jesus. "Jesus, thank you for showing me how to pray. Thank you for sharing your Father with me!" Jonah 4:1-11
Psalm 86:3-6, 9-10 |  clickable | We are sailboats; our hearts are the sails, and God's love is the wind. We are called to receive the love of God and then to make all of our decisions from out of our communion with Divine Love.
— Fr. Scott Traynor
from Parish as a School of Prayer | my2cents:
"You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor
and which you did not raise"
Yesterday our Lord said to Martha "you are concerned about many things...".
As if this was YOUR world. As if things belong to YOU. As if we had to always tell God what to do, and tell others what to do. At which point do we actually start giving...Him full faith? What was Jonah's deal? Why was he seemingly pouting? To play the angel's advocate, I'd like to point out, that Jonah was a chosen and just man. He saw how many times this city rejected the Lord's precepts, its own Jewish people even, just completely blended in with the crowds and their debauchery. Jonah was burning inside. The burning sun on his head was a sign. He kept watch, to see what God would do. Until our Lord spoke "I am raising them, those people are MY CREATION, and I love them dearly, for I am among them". | We pray today: " Lord, you are merciful and gracious. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all who call upon you. Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer
and attend to the sound of my pleading." Jonah didn't want to proclaim mercy because He knew they would receive mercy, although he thought they didn't deserve it anymore. Now, the person in most need of mercy was Jonah. Now you need to be the one seeking Mercy. Jonah was a prayerful man, went up the mountain to pray. Spent the night in prayer. Was waiting for God to talk with him. He knew He needed a new heart. Don't we all? | The Holy Gospel, began by saying "Jesus was praying in a certain place...".
It seems things happen after He returns from prayer. Ministries begin. Or He is confronted with the next phase of life. So what was prayer all about? He said pray then: | "Father, hallowed be your name...". It is the first and second commandments, isn't it? Stating that Our Father is God above all, and that His name shall always be holy? Never to be used in vain, or for nothing, or for trashing. Right? Why do people use His name in vain all the time? The popular phraise OMG seems to be on the tip of people's mouths. Is that an all day blasphemy? Why doesn't something else blurt out but that? How can we keep His name Holy then? By saying His name for good, and not for nothing! Show others this name is of our most Holy and Precious Father in Heaven. "...your Kingdom come." And then we say "thy will be done". Ahh. Jonah, where are you now? What of God's will in your life? What of all He's doing and you not liking? What of all that is being asked of you and it is not to your liking? Or, what of you asking to be a part of His Kingdom! A brother said last week in our group "I prayed to the Lord to use me in ministry...and then I got a call to do 3 different ones almost in one week". LOL, be careful in asking the Lord to be involved in His Kingdom. Mother Mary did so, and Jesus came into her life.... "Give us each day our daily bread...". The daily bread for protestants is the bible alone. For Catholics, it is the Word turned into flesh. Daily bread was literally being served since Jesus said "DO THIS in memory of Me, This Is My Flesh". Why do I receive daily bread, the Eucharist? Honestly, as much as I'd like to say it helps me get through my day or it sustains me, even if all that were true, that's not the true reason I go. I go because here, God is revealing Himself, manifesting Himself in the most beautiful way possible, a miracle, I go to partake of, this offering of Himself. Whereas few go, I want to be there. "...and forgive us our sins". This daily prayer asks for daily forgiveness. Protestants do this as so do we. But, we also are availed an absolution as Catholics, if true contrition is there. If you are sincerely sorry, God will help. The Lord hears the cry of the poor. Amen? "for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us". now wait, here is a biggie. Forgiving others their debts? Their transgressions? The insults? The abuse? Their constant threats? The hurt they caused? Stop just one moment there: what was hurt? Feelings? Or pride? My dear one, feelings cause many to die. We can not depend on human feelings for everything, sometimes they are deceiving. So are emotions an earthly, and carnal thing? Like pleasures? This is the most interesting thing I've found in years of working on faith. Feelings can be deceptive. My eyes have seen things that were not true. My ears have heard things that were not true. My taste buds have deceived me. And my heart has led me astray many times. My mind has played games with me. And all this boils down to one thing...faith. Where is your faith? Where is your love? What is it set on? Shall it not be the rock? "and do not subject us to the final test." They say that Pope Francis "wants to change the Lord's prayer". It is another media hype and lie. A grain of truth though always mixes in the lie. He is wanting to make the wording in English to match the rest of the world. We say "and lead us not into temptation". That is not right, says Pope. It is true. God does not lead us into temptation. He does not lead us into despair. We lead ourselves into temptation, or the dark forces do. Thus we are led into despair. In spanish the prayer ends "no nos dejes caer en tentacion". Do Not Let Us Fall Into Temptation.
It is asking for help. It is a prayer that should always be on our minds. Afterall, it is the Lord's prayer! Amen? What have we learned today? Our Lord loves us. Amen.
Our Lord teaches us to pray. Amen.
We are to let Him live among us, and get out of the way. Amen.
Wait what??? Yes. More of Him, less of Me. Otherwise, your feelings will be more important. Ok Jonah? I mean my child ?
Have faith, God is doing things we will probably never understand. And this is good. It shows us just Who He is, and just who we are.
Creatures living by faith, created to live in connection with the almighty, who dares to call us His...friend, brother, and Father! |  hear it read | adrian Random Bible Verse 1
Psalm 50:14–15 14 Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,1 and perform your vows to the Most High,
15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me." Footnotes [1] 50:14 Or Make thanksgiving your sacrifice to God Thank You Jesus | |
