 clickable | | Padre Pio's Passion Today, Padre Pio is one of the most famous saints. His popularity in the Catholic world is enormous and is always growing. Popes, cardinals, bishops, priests, religious, and all believers venerate and love Padre Pio. He is also esteemed, revered, and respected by Protestants, the Orthodox, the Jews, and even in some Muslim circles. But people still continue to ignore the "passion" that Padre Pio lived through for his whole earthly life. To ignore the persecution as if it never existed is unjust and mistaken because the very persecution he endured—at times weeping with sorrow because of it but without ever complaining—demonstrates how great Padre Pio's holiness was. Whenever he would hear one of his friends rail against ecclesiastical authority, he would become angry and say, "Kneel and ask for forgiveness: the Church is our mother even when she strikes us." —from the book Saint Padre Pio: Man of Hope by Renzo Allegri |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you."
— St. Thomas Aquinas † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"All our perfection consists in being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus Christ; and therefore the most perfect of all devotions is, without any doubt, that which the most perfectly conforms, unites and consecrates us to Jesus Christ. Now, Mary being the most conformed of all creatures to Jesus Christ, it follows that, of all devotions, that which most consecrates and conforms the soul to Our Lord is devotion to His holy Mother, and that the more a soul is consecrated to Mary, the more it is consecrated to Jesus."
— St. Louis De Montfort, p. 65
AN EXCERPT FROM
True Devotion to Mary † VERSE OF THE DAY
"One of the scribes, when he came forward and heard them disputing and saw how well he had answered them, asked him, "Which is the first of all the commandments?" Jesus replied, "The first is this: 'Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
Mark 12:28-31 |  click to read more | | ST. IGNATIUS OF SANTHIA St. Ignatius of Santhia (1686-1770) was born in Italy to an upper-class family. He received his early education from a devout priest, a relative of his mother, who inspired him to join the priesthood. He studied philosophy and theology, and after his ordination served as a diocesan priest for six years. St. Ignatius earned a reputation as an excellent preacher of retreats and missions, and he had a promising future within the diocese. His family and parishioners were surprised and disappointed when he decided to join the Capuchin Franciscans in Turin as a poor, humble friar. However, St. Ignatius flourished in the poverty and simplicity of the Franciscan way of life. He became well-known for his wisdom and sanctity, and many people from all walks of life came to him for confession and spiritual direction. He had a great devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and prayed the rosary faithfully. He served God with humble obedience and inspired this virtue in the Franciscan novices over whom he had charge. He spent his last years on a sickbed where he continued to hear confessions and give direction to his visitors. St. Ignatius of Santhia's feast day is September 22nd. | ______________________________ Tuesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 PRV 21:1-6, 10-13 Like a stream is the king's heart in the hand of the LORD;
wherever it pleases him, he directs it.
All the ways of a man may be right in his own eyes,
but it is the LORD who proves hearts.
To do what is right and just
is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.
Haughty eyes and a proud heart–
the tillage of the wicked is sin.
The plans of the diligent are sure of profit,
but all rash haste leads certainly to poverty.
Whoever makes a fortune by a lying tongue
is chasing a bubble over deadly snares.
The soul of the wicked man desires evil;
his neighbor finds no pity in his eyes.
When the arrogant man is punished, the simple are the wiser;
when the wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge.
The just man appraises the house of the wicked:
there is one who brings down the wicked to ruin.
He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor
will himself also call and not be heard. Responsorial Psalm PS 119:1, 27, 30, 34, 35, 44 R. (35) Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Blessed are they whose way is blameless,
who walk in the law of the LORD.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Make me understand the way of your precepts,
and I will meditate on your wondrous deeds.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
The way of truth I have chosen;
I have set your ordinances before me.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Give me discernment, that I may observe your law
and keep it with all my heart.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
Lead me in the path of your commands,
for in it I delight.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.
And I will keep your law continually,
forever and ever.
R. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands. Alleluia LK 11:28 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are those who hear the word of God
and observe it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 8:19-21 The mother of Jesus and his brothers came to him
but were unable to join him because of the crowd.
He was told, "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside
and they wish to see you."
He said to them in reply, "My mother and my brothers
are those who hear the word of God and act on it."
| Daily Meditation: Luke 8:19-21 Your mother and your brothers are standing outside. (Luke 8:20) His family couldn't get close to Jesus. The crowd—people from "one town after another" who had traveled to see to him (Luke 8:4)—blocked the way. So they sent word to Jesus: Here we are standing outside, and we want to see you. Jesus' response probably surprised both the crowd and his family: "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it" (8:21). First, let's get this out of the way: Jesus was not condemning his family. Think about it—if ever there was someone who heard God's word and acted on it, it was his mother, Mary. But Jesus was pointing to a bigger truth. Blood relationship did not entitle them to special privileges. It must have surprised his family when he did not come out to meet them. But he wasn't rejecting them. Rather than narrowing or shutting his family circle, Jesus was expanding it. He was bringing everyone who hears and obeys God's voice into his family. This must have also surprised the crowd. Think of the effort they had gone to so that they could see Jesus. Think of how much they wanted to hear his words and receive healing from this Galilean miracle worker. But family is family, they must have thought. Of course Jesus would give priority to his mother. How would it have affected them when Jesus said they were his mother and brothers and sisters as well! Their actions showed that they were pursuing Jesus with faith. And he told them they had access to him and a special place in his heart. It probably made them want to follow him all the more. The same applies to you. You are a treasured member of Jesus' family. As you listen to his word and let it sink into your heart and mind, you can sense his closeness. In your actions—whether serving your family or the needy or offering forgiveness or encouragement—you can see his face in those you care for. The more time you spend with Jesus and the more you follow his way, the closer you'll feel to him. Just like family. "Lord, thank you for making me part of your family!" Proverbs 21:1-6, 10-13
Psalm 119:1, 27, 30, 34-35, 44 |  clickable | Whenever your will weakens in your ordinary work, you must recall these thoughts: 'Study, work, is an essential part of my way. If I were discredited professionally as a consequence of my laziness it would make my work as a Christian useless or impossible. To attract and to help others, I need the influence of my professional reputation, and that is what God wants.'
— St. Josemaría Escrivá
from his book Furrow | my2cents:
"All the ways of a man may be right in his own eyes,
but it is the LORD who proves hearts." When it comes to morals, we have a dilemma. There are those who make themselves the absolute moral truth, and there are those who accept God's morals as absolute truth. Recent polls show that about half of so called Catholics say sex is ok before marriage. There is a severe dichotomy, one pitted against the other. The worldly ways are convincing the flock. Look at today's most liberal cities, amidst the pandemic, and look at how they treat the Church. That is the result of the opposing man and his theology of life. What has allowed this to happen? The answer is in the question. Allowance. Permission. All under the guise of "tolerance". The world is intolerant to our Christ. But they call for "tolerance" on all their debauchery, from murder of unborn children to the mockery of marriage, all things hinging on intercourse.
Man makes himself to be right. But nobody is right before God. Nobody is perfect. Therefore, it is impossible to be right...without God as our righteousness. And this is the light. How do we reverse the trend of this disease in the world? The sin of disease calls for a cure, and Christ our Lord has the answer. | We pray today: "The way of truth I have chosen; I have set your ordinances before me. Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands." To love God's laws shows a heart ready for the citizenship of Heaven. Do you love His laws? The truly free are happy in this field. The truly imprisoned hate God's laws. And we are speaking of many realms. Let's keep this in mind as our Lord continues. | We heard in the Holy Gospel: "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and they wish to see you."
Who were his brothers? Ask protestants and they will give you their new theories about impurity; i.e., "Mary had other kids, she was not pure, she was not a virgin, and neither was Joseph". Nobody cares to see brothers like we do in any brotherhood. If a biker gang showed up and said "we want to see our brother" nobody would have all these questions and theories. But since man is contrary to purity, they immediately jump to the sex part, submissive to the things of impurity.
Ask a faithful Catholic about the mother and brothers of Jesus and receive the answer of purity, just like our priests are called to purity to this day. All things contrary to the world. And we are all baptized priests in a way too.
So who are the mother and brothers of Jesus? | Our Lord has the answer: "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it." This single line has many parables. The parable of the seed sown on various grounds (act). The parable of the invested talents (act). The parable of the treasure in the field (action). And it even speaks about our Lord Himself, as the new Joseph in the world where his brothers rejected him, the rejected cornerstone (brothers didn't act, had no faith). The sign of Jonah too, calls to act. To repent. To live life a new way. It calls for a complete conversion by immersion. Do you hear the Word of God? Let's say, all most Catholic people do is go to Mass (which isn't happening in the pandemic much). They typically don't pray every day. Do you think a typical person can hear the word of God, truly? I would say not. To hear Him, you must be tuned in, completely focused and immersed, all day, every day (doing His will). The importance of this is to avail yourself to His every beckoning call. Live as Mary and work as Martha.
So did Mother Mary lose Jesus again like when He was 12 years old? LOL. It took them 3 days to find Him then. How long did it take them this time to find Him? We don't know, maybe a few hours? If then, the most holy and chosen weren't able to be with him 24 hours a day, we should take heart in their relentless message...seek Him again. Seek and ye shall find. Hear the Word and act on it.
This is a call to action. We are doers of the Word.
We make His word an action. We make it happen.
A contrite heart is the sacrifice He desires. This calls for true contrition, and in our Reconciliation Sacrament, we call this an act of contrition. And true contrition makes our face turn to God, like flint, like an arrow, headed to the target. Otherwise, missing the target is sin. Lord, help us be ever attentive to your every beckoning call. Help us make your Word become living flesh, life and light for all the world to see. To see not me, but thee, all things humility turned charity.... | Random Bible verse from online generator: Psalm 46 1-3 God Is Our Fortress To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth.1 A Song. 46 God is our refuge and strength, a very present2 help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah | If one day you don't receive these, just visit my website Going4th.com, surely you'll find me there. God Bless You! Share the Word. Share this, share what is good | |
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