 |  clickable | | Carry the Light of the Risen One Carry the Light of the Risen OneOne of Pope Francis's favorite distinctions is the difference between joy and mere happiness. This is something that's good to carry with us into the Easter season. His example of Mary Magdalene points to a key aspect of joy: It often follows a time of suffering, of disappointment, of struggle overcome and transformed. If Mary hadn't cared so much for Jesus, her sense of loss wouldn't have been as deep, but neither would her joy at their reunion. One of the hallmarks of a true friend is someone who can accompany us through good times and bad, weeping and rejoicing as circumstances change. A genuine faith offers the same support. We are blessed if we have such friends, graced if we have such faith. —from the book The Hope of Lent: Daily Reflections from Pope Francis by Diane M. Houdek |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"Here is a rule for everyday life: Do not do anything which you cannot offer to God."
— St. Jean Marie Vianney † PRAYER DURING CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
O clement, O loving, O sweet Mother Mary,
We, your children of every nation,
Turn to you in this pandemic.
Our troubles are numerous; our fears are great.
Grant that we might deposit them at your feet,
Take refuge in your Immaculate Heart,
And obtain peace, healing, rescue,
And timely help in all our needs.
You are our Mother.
Pray for us to your Son.
Amen. † PRAYER OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot now receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there, and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen. † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"There is not a moment in which God does not present Himself under the cover of some pain to be endured, of some consolation to be enjoyed, or of some duty to be performed. All that takes place within us, around us, or through us, contains and conceals His divine action. It is really and truly there present, but invisibly present, so that we are always surprised and do not recognise His operation until it has ceased. If we could lift the veil, and if we were attentive and watchful God would continually reveal Himself to us, and we should see His divine action in everything that happened to us, and rejoice in it. At each successive occurrence we should exclaim: 'It is the Lord', and we should accept every fresh circumstance as a gift of God. We should look upon creatures as feeble tools in the hands of an able workman, and should discover easily that nothing was wanting to us, and that the constant providence of God disposed Him to bestow upon us at every moment whatever we required."
—Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade
AN EXCERPT FROM
Abandonment of Divine Providence † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obedience to the voice of the Lord? Surely, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams."
1 Samuel 15:22 |  click to read more | | †ST. ANSELM OF CANTERBURY St. Anselm (1033–1109) was born into a noble family in the Lombardy region of Italy. The example of his pious mother led him to great faith, and he sought to enter the monastery at age 15. However, the abbot refused him due to Anselm's stern father. After his mother's death Anselm left home and settled in Normandy to study under the direction of a famed monk named Lanfranc. Upon the death of his father, Anselm became a Benedictine monk at the age of 27. Due to his brilliance, Anselm became a teacher at the abbey's school and prior of the monastery. He went on to become the most learned theologian, philosopher, and mystic of his generation, the greatest since St. Augustine of Hippo. Anselm's fame led to his appointment as Archbishop of Canterbury in England, succeeding Lanfranc in this office, where he went on to correct abuses against the Church at the hand of the English kings. Twice he was banished from the island while appealing to Rome for assistance, and twice he returned to Canterbury to carry on his duties until his death. His abilities as an extraordinary theologian, negotiator, and statesman greatly supported the cause of the Church. As archbishop he continued his monastic lifestyle and intellectual pursuits. He composed several philosophical and theological treatises, as well as a series of beautiful prayers and meditations, which led him to be proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope Clement XI in 1720. His feast day is celebrated on April 21st. | Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter
Lectionary: 268
Reading 1 Acts 4:32-37 The community of believers was of one heart and mind,
and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,
but they had everything in common.
With great power the Apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.
There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,
bring the proceeds of the sale,
and put them at the feet of the Apostles,
and they were distributed to each according to need. Thus Joseph, also named by the Apostles Barnabas
(which is translated "son of encouragement"),
a Levite, a Cypriot by birth,
sold a piece of property that he owned,
then brought the money and put it at the feet of the Apostles. Responsorial Psalm 93:1ab, 1cd-2, 5 R.(1a) The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD is king, in splendor robed;
robed is the LORD and girt about with strength.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
And he has made the world firm,
not to be moved.
Your throne stands firm from of old;
from everlasting you are, O LORD.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed:
holiness befits your house,
O LORD, for length of days.
R. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia Jn 3:14-15 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Son of Man must be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him
may have eternal life. R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 3:7b-15 Jesus said to Nicodemus:
"'You must be born from above.'
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Nicodemus answered and said to him,
'How can this happen?"
Jesus answered and said to him,
"You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you,
we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen,
but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." | Today's Meditation: John 3:7-15 The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes. (John 3:8) Jesus wanted Nicodemus to understand what it meant to be "born from above" (John 3:7). But Nicodemus didn't understand, and Jesus knew it. Yet he didn't give up on him. Rather, Jesus gently tried to draw Nicodemus closer to the truth by using the analogy of the wind—something Nicodemus could grasp. Isn't it amazing how good and patient God is with us? Our lack of understanding, our tendency to get confused or to not listen closely doesn't deter or hinder him. Just look at the story of our salvation. God spoke through his prophets to convince the Israelites that following his ways would bring blessing and life. They would understand for a time, only to fall again. But he didn't give up on them. In "the fullness of time," he spoke through his Word, Jesus (Galatians 4:4). Then Jesus himself spoke to us in the words we read in the Gospels. Using parables, references to Old Testament passages, or analogies as he did with Nicodemus, Jesus showed us how much God loves us and longs to be with us forever. God is still patient with us. He still finds many different ways to speak to us so that we will understand. For example, when feelings of peace or hope or expectancy well up as you ponder Scripture, that is God speaking to you. When creative ideas or resolutions to issues you are dealing with come to mind while you sit in prayer, that is God speaking to you. When you are filled with wonder and praise for the Lord as you watch a glorious sunset, that is God speaking to you. He could even speak to you in a dream or through a beautiful piece of art or music. The important thing is to expect that God will speak to you. You will learn to recognize his voice as you spend time carefully listening to him. Sometimes his voice is loud or booming, but so often it's gentle, simple, and quiet. God is good and patient, and he will keep speaking until you understand what he is saying. "Father, I believe you are always speaking. Help me to hear your voice today." Acts 4:32-37
Psalm 93:1-2, 5 |  clickable | "When faith becomes the force that supports a person and the person relies entirely on God, then faith automatically becomes love. The great figures of faith—from Paul via Francis of Assisi down to Maximilian Kolbe and Mother Teresa—show us this."
— Joseph Ratzinger
from Teaching and Learning the Love of God | my2cents:
"There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, and put them at the feet of the Apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need."
Would you sell your house and trust the Church to take care of you?
Would you give to the Church and trust them?
Today the trust factor is all over the place. Some trust. Some do not. There have been many that have broken that trust. Are you one of them?
You can blame the priest, or bishop, or pope, but what about your trust that has been broken?
Where is that restoration factor? Right now, nobody trusts anybody to be touched because of a pandemonium unleashed on the world. It is the pandemonium of fear and greatest distrust. Once again, the issue of faith...at hand. | We pray today: "Your decrees are worthy of trust indeed: holiness befits your house,
O LORD, for length of days. The Lord is king; he is robed in majesty"
The Lord is King.
So we have many that won't trust the priest, the bishop, or the pope.
So we have many that won't trust the local officials, the governor, nor the president.
Or we trust somewhat.
And so we have one eye on them, we only have one hand open. The door is halfway closed, not so much open. | Our Lord asked: "If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?"
Who do you trust about earthly things? Who do you trust about Heavenly things?
Our Lord continues and the message resounds of the first lines of John: "No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man."
In the beginning there was the word, and the word was made flesh. Jesus is the Word that has always been spoken, and prophesied, and many of the prophets that prophesied were killed. Who do you trust with His word? Today many take the bible and make it their own, to the tune of over 50 or 60,000 denominations that continue to grow every day. Who do you trust with the Word of God? | It can be confusing. Like the pandemonium unleashed into the world, a hype attached to a sickness. A dis ease is what is upon us.
Who do you trust? Can you trust anything that comes from the news? Some seem to trust the news more than anything.
Our priest has got backlash and so have I for not being a fear mongrel, a slave of fear. They issue the government warrants. Warnings for not having fear imposed on us. Fear of what? Death? Are you mad because we have taken our lives ...for the Lord?
I heard yesterday of a loved one in Mexico, she wants to come see her family for Mother's day (in Mexico it is May 10th every year) but her children said for her not to come because of the pandemic. They know she visits the sick and brings the word of God to them. They know she is exposed and exposing herself and threatens to bring her exposed self to her loved ones she loves so very much. But her children warn her to stay away. Don't come near. Don't you dare.
Who do you trust? There seems to be no immediate answers to life's difficulties. Our Lord told the doubters: "you people do not accept our testimony."
Acceptance, is belief, but it is more...it is a way of life.
And so, because of their incredulity, He says the last verse today:
" just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
A sign was lifted up. "Look at your disobedience", now "look at your cure". It takes venom to make anti-venom. It takes yeast to make bread. That's what God does on the cross.
Do you trust Him?
It could be a beautiful day outside, flowers everywhere, growing like weeds, but if you have no peace or joy of the Lord, can you truly enjoy what the Lord has done?
Stop and smell the roses.
Stop your anxieties, anger, and frustration.
Now we live day by day by what He provides on the Holy Mountain.
Food for the world.
Light for the world.
Sustenance for the Spirit. Come to me all...baptize all in His Holy Name |  click to hear a message | Random Bible verse from an online generator: Proverbs 22:4 The reward for humility and fear of the LORD is riches and honor and life.1 | 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 | | |
