 clickable | | Love Responds to Love We have been graced for a truly sweet surrender, if we can radically accept being radically accepted—for nothing! "Or grace would not be grace at all"! (Romans 11:6). As my father, St. Francis, put it, when the heart is pure, "Love responds to Love alone" and has little to do with duty, obligation, requirement, or heroic anything. It is easy to surrender when you know that nothing but Love and Mercy is on the other side. —from the book Breathing Under Water: Spirituality and the Twelve Steps by Richard Rohr, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | †Holy Quote
"Christ made my soul beautiful with the jewels of grace and virtue. I belong to Him whom the angels serve."
– St. Agnes †Meditation of the Day
"With creation, God does not abandon his creatures to themselves. He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, enables them to act and brings them to their final end. Recognizing this utter dependence with respect to the Creator is a source of wisdom and freedom, of joy and confidence: 'For you love all things that exist, and detest none of the things that you have made; for you would not have made anything if you had hated it. How would anything have endured, if you had not willed it? Or how would anything not called forth by you have been preserved? You spare all things for they are yours, O Lord, you who love the living' (Wisdom 11:24-26)."
— (CCC, 301)
An Excerpt From
Catechism of the Catholic Church †Verse of the Day
"In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God."
Romans 8:26-27 |  click to read more | | Saint Adrian of Canterbury (d. January 9, 710) Though Saint Adrian turned down a papal request to become Archbishop of Canterbury, England, Pope Saint Vitalian accepted the rejection on the condition that Adrian serve as the Holy Father's assistant and adviser. Adrian accepted, but ended up spending most of his life and doing most of his work in Canterbury. Born in Africa, Adrian was serving as an abbot in Italy when the new Archbishop of Canterbury appointed him abbot of the monastery of Saints Peter and Paul in Canterbury. Thanks to his leadership skills, the facility became one of the most important centers of learning. The school attracted many outstanding scholars from far and wide and produced numerous future bishops and archbishops. Students reportedly learned Greek and Latin and spoke Latin as well as their own native languages. Adrian taught at the school for 40 years. He died there, probably in the year 710, and was buried in the monastery. Several hundred years later, when reconstruction was being done, Adrian's body was discovered in an incorrupt state. As word spread, people flocked to his tomb, which became famous for miracles. Rumor had it that young schoolboys in trouble with their masters made regular visits there.
Reflection Saint Adrian spent most of his time in Canterbury not as bishop, but as abbot and teacher. Often the Lord has plans for us that are obvious only on hindsight. How often have we said no to something or someone only to end up in much the same place anyway. The Lord knows what's good for us. Can we trust him? | Thursday after Epiphany Lectionary: 215
Reading 1 1 JN 4:19–5:4 Beloved, we love God because
he first loved us.
If anyone says, "I love God,"
but hates his brother, he is a liar;
for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen
cannot love God whom he has not seen.
This is the commandment we have from him:
Whoever loves God must also love his brother. Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God,
and everyone who loves the Father
loves also the one begotten by him.
In this way we know that we love the children of God
when we love God and obey his commandments.
For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,
for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.
And the victory that conquers the world is our faith. Responsorial Psalm PS 72:1-2, 14 AND 15BC, 17 R. (see 11) Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
From fraud and violence he shall redeem them,
and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
May they be prayed for continually;
day by day shall they bless him.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you.
May his name be blessed forever;
as long as the sun his name shall remain.
In him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed;
all the nations shall proclaim his happiness.
R. Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. Alleluia LK 4:18 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Lord has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor
and to proclaim liberty to captives.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 4:14-22 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region.
He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all. He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.
He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.
He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.
He said to them,
"Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing."
And all spoke highly of him
and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. | Catholic Meditations
Meditation: Luke 4:14-22 Christmas Weekday The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. (Luke 4:18) It's obvious that Jesus said these words about himself. But can you believe that the very same thing could be said about you? Everyone who has been baptized into Christ has received his Holy Spirit. Whether you feel like it or not—indeed, whether your experience tells you so or not—the Holy Spirit is upon you! So what do you do with this piece of information? After you get over being amazed at it, should you sit back and bask in your great good fortune? Hardly. Jesus came to inaugurate the kingdom of God, a place where every tear is wiped away and every bond is loosed. The afflicted hear the good news of God's love, and people who once were blind can finally see evidence of his presence. Those enslaved to sin are set free, and those hungering for peace will be filled. It all sounds so good, doesn't it? But as we know, it doesn't happen by magic. The kingdom of God only grows as we—bearers of his Spirit—love one another as he loved us, when we do for others what he has done for us. You may think that you are woefully inadequate to the task, but that's not what God thinks. He gave you his Spirit for just this reason. As you learn to sense the Spirit and follow his lead, you'll begin to overcome the limitations that seem to loom large in your heart. Over time, you'll grow in confidence, and God will use you for greater and greater things. This idea of "sensing" the Spirit can sound out of reach, but it's really quite simple. He is that still, small voice in the back of your mind urging you to forgive your coworker for what she said about you. He's the tap on your shoulder pointing out a neighbor who seems lonely. He's the quick catch in your throat that arises when you are about to say something inappropriate or hurtful. Every time you follow one of these gentle prods, you are laying another foundation stone for the kingdom. Not only that, but every time you do this, you are building a stronger foundation for your own life—a foundation of peace and confidence in the Spirit who lives in you. "Jesus, help me to sense your Spirit today—and to follow his lead." 1 John 4:19–5:4
Psalm 72:1-2, 14-15, 17 |  clickable | Satan has a kingdom here on earth. It's called the culture of death, but his kingdom has an expiration date. That's good news. Jesus has a kingdom as well. There is no expiration date. It will last forever. Remember, Church, we have been won by One. The next time the devil reminds you of your past, remind him of his future.
— Jesse Romero
from The Devil in the City of Angels | my2cents:
"If anyone says, "I love God," but hates his brother, he is a liar".
Have you ever had someone say they love you and then act like they don't? It's a lie, isn't it? Or is it someone that is trying? How can you know? How can you know if someone really loves you?
I tell my wife I love her, and she tells me too. But sometimes, she probably thinks different, or sometimes I may feel unloved. Why? There are many fronts to this. The main culprit is anti-love...or better said, the anti-Christ. There was a story of a guy that here lately shoved a crucifix down a 90 year old priest's throat. What happened? He said that priest abused him AND his dad. So, over time, things happened, and one day, he decided to kill him. Had the priest ever repented? Had the priest ever personally apologized? We may never know. But anti-love reared its ugly head. Why do I bring this atrocity to the front? Because things get ugly when anti-life comes. And the anti-life is called choice. In these daily emails, I noticed years ago, that I would get an un-subscription notice when I'd talk about abortion. It didn't set well with people. That doesn't happen much anymore. But I notice un-subscriptions come nowadays when I talk about homosexuals.
Why do I bring this up? I hope one day we will realize what Archbishop Fulton Sheen said once "first nudity...then violence". Sex incites violence. In the book of Genesis, a violence occurs. Was it when a brother killed another? Nope. That was the effect, of the cause. Nudity was at one time pure and innocence. And then they hid themselves, after they did something with nudity...then they called nudity shame. Innocence was lost. An affair happened...an act against God's will. Soon...we brought about violence on ourselves.
Is this a prophecy about today's superfast technological and social atmosphere? It can be. I've been on a steady loss of subscriptions for the past few months. But there remains a core group that stands out. That core involves you. At the core of all matters...at the center....there we will find Christ. | Let us pray: "Lord, every nation on earth will adore you. From fraud and violence he shall redeem them, and precious shall their blood be in his sight. May they be prayed for continually;
day by day shall they bless him." | "Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit,
and news of him spread throughout the whole region. He taught in their synagogues and was praised by all." He WAS praised by all. His fame spread everywhere. And it almost seems, the more the fame, the bigger the target. The more the light, the more darkness wants it out. Yet He dared to enter the Temple...our hearts: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord." | And we begin a new year...proclaiming a holy libation...a holy sacrifice to the Lord.
All eyes were on Him: "Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing."
A refining process has begun. In the Kingdom of Heaven, many are called, and few are chosen.
Is that right? Is that fair? In my management position, I have to judge out of all who work here, who can be a manager. I've been asked this several times lately. Is it the best worker? Or is it one who wants the position? Because we asked once our best worker if he'd do it, and he said he didn't want to. You see? The heart begins to matter. And then you get one who wants to, but isn't a fit. But, we can do more with the will than anything else.
Now let's focus on the will of our Father.
What is God's will in your life? It is pretty clear. Doing God's will is doing what God wants. Need to hear it again? Ok, here it goes:
" ...bring glad tidings to the poor.
...proclaim liberty to captives
... recovery of sight to the blind,
... let the oppressed go free,
and ...proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord."
Bring Souls To Jesus.
Evangelize.
Set sinners free from their sins!
Let those living crazy blind, let them see!
Let those in chains of slavery be set free!
Is it that hard? It can be if you're the one that needs to be set free.
So let's go there. To confessions. I know it is hard, I know! And then take in blood and mercy from Heaven. Otherwise, how can we give others what we don't got?
Think Love.
Think Mercy.
Think Grace.
Think now about how things work in Heaven.... |  click to hear a message | Random Bible Verse 1 Romans 8:18 Future Glory 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. Thank You Lord | |
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