 clickable | | Becoming a Portable Peacemaker Mutual giving and receiving is, I believe, the bedrock of Franciscan peacemaking. By overcoming shame or fear, or whatever it is that is holding you back from reaching out to the poor and broken ones, you enter a startling world of sweetness of soul that is not just self-serving but that accomplishes a profound reconciliation of opposites that makes it possible to experience a new, unexpected bond with the other. And you want to stay there, not necessarily in that physical place but in that spiritual and psychological space where the lion and the lamb lie down together. Nor is the bond something static. It only endures if you continue to overcome new barriers, cross new and fearsome barriers so that you yourself become the place of reconciliation wherever you go. That kind of portable peacemaker was who St. Francis was. —from Surrounded by Love: Seven Teachings from Saint Francis by Murray Bodo, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"Be one of the small number who find the way to life, and enter by the narrow gate into Heaven. Take care not to follow the majority and the common herd, so many of whom are lost. Do not be deceived; there are only two roads: one that leads to life and is narrow; the other that leads to death and is wide. There is no middle way."
— St. Louis de Montfort † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"What is this brightness—with which God fills the soul of the just—but that clear knowledge of all that is necessary for salvation? He shows them the beauty of virtue and the deformity of vice. He reveals to them the vanity of the world, the treasures of grace, the greatness of eternal glory, and the sweetness of the consolations of the Holy Spirit. He teaches them to apprehend the goodness of God, the malice of the evil one, the shortness of life, and the fatal error of those whose hopes are centered in this world alone. Hence the equanimity of the just. They are neither puffed up by prosperity nor cast down by adversity.'A holy man', says Solomon, 'continueth in wisdom as the sun, but a fool is changed as the moon.' (Ecclus. 27:12). Unmoved by the winds of false doctrine, the just man continues steadfast in Christ, immoveable in charity, unswerving in faith."
— Venerable Louis Of Grenada, p. 135
AN EXCERPT FROM
The Sinner's Guide † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are of a fearful heart, "Be strong, fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.""
Isaiah 35:3-4 |  click to read more | | ST. MARIA FAUSTINA KOWALSKA St. Maria Faustina Kowalska (1905-1938), baptized with the name Helena, was one of ten children born to a devout, peasant farming family in Poland. She grew up during the tough years leading up to and following the first World War, and received little formal education. She worked as a poor housekeeper before following her religious vocation at the age of 20, entering the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Krakow. There she was given simple, humble jobs which hid her deep interior life. St. Faustina was graced with mystical visions and revelations from Jesus, as well as her Guardian Angel and certain saints. Jesus gave her the mission to proclaim his infinite, powerful, loving mercy to the whole world, especially to hardened sinners and those facing the hour of their death. St. Faustina, as Jesus' "secretary and apostle of Divine Mercy", faithfully recorded these messages in great detail in a nearly 700-page diary. In it she promoted devotion to the Divine Mercy of Jesus Christ as instructed by Our Lord himself, now famous throughout the Church, and a great consolation for many souls who would otherwise fear to approach God because of their burden of sin. She died at the age of 33 from tuberculosis. Pope St. John Paul II made St. Faustina the first saint of the new millennium. Her feast day is October 5th. | Monday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 GAL 1:6-12 Brothers and sisters:
I am amazed that you are so quickly forsaking
the one who called you by the grace of Christ
for a different gospel (not that there is another).
But there are some who are disturbing you
and wish to pervert the Gospel of Christ.
But even if we or an angel from heaven
should preach to you a gospel
other than the one that we preached to you,
let that one be accursed!
As we have said before, and now I say again,
if anyone preaches to you a gospel
other than the one that you received,
let that one be accursed!
Am I now currying favor with human beings or God?
Or am I seeking to please people?
If I were still trying to please people,
I would not be a slave of Christ.
Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters,
that the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin.
For I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it,
but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ. Responsorial Psalm PS 111:1B-2, 7-8, 9 AND 10C R. (5) The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart
in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD,
exquisite in all their delights.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
sure are all his precepts,
Reliable forever and ever,
wrought in truth and equity.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has sent deliverance to his people;
he has ratified his covenant forever;
holy and awesome is his name.
His praise endures forever.
R. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia JN 13:34
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel LK 10:25-37 There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
"Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus said to him, "What is written in the law?
How do you read it?"
He said in reply,
"You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your being,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself."
He replied to him, "You have answered correctly;
do this and you will live."
But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus,
"And who is my neighbor?"
Jesus replied,
"A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
'Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.'
Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers' victim?"
He answered, "The one who treated him with mercy."
Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise." | Daily Meditation: Luke 10:25-37 When he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side. (Luke 10:31) In Jesus' parable, the priest and the Levite passed by a man on the side of the road who had been robbed, beaten, and left for dead. We don't know why these two men continued on their way—maybe they were hurrying to an appointment or were just fearful about stopping and possibly getting robbed and beaten themselves. Maybe they just didn't care. Only the Samaritan was willing to sacrifice his time and money to save the man. It's likely that each of us will "pass by" someone in need today. While it could be someone literally stranded by the side of the road, it could also be a coworker who is wrestling with loneliness. It could be someone in our own home, like a teenager who is worried and anxious. How will we relate to these "neighbors" whom Jesus is asking us to love (Luke 10:27)? Could we start by sitting with the coworker in the lunchroom and getting to know that person? Could we set aside some time for our child to ask him what's on his mind and how he's really doing? Jesus shared this parable to illustrate how God defines love and how he invites us to love the people around us. Loving our neighbor often translates to some level of personal sacrifice. It requires us to be accessible. It might call us out of our comfort zone, or it might mean giving of our time and resources. Maybe we don't feel we have anything extra to give at that moment. Just think: Jesus could have "passed by" us, remained in heaven, and avoided the pain of becoming a man and enduring the cross. But he didn't. He suffered for us so that we could be reunited with his Father. He saw each of us as a beloved child of the Father worth sacrificing and dying for. When we make sacrifices to enter into someone else's life, we are loving the way Jesus loves. We are choosing to see our neighbors as he sees them—as beloved children of God. Today Jesus invites us to "go and do likewise" (Luke 10:37). "Jesus, show me how to love my neighbor today." Galatians 1:6-12
Psalm 111:1-2, 7-10 |  clickable | Now a Catholic is a person who has plucked up courage to face the incredible and inconceivable idea that something else may be wiser than he is.
— G.K. Chesterton
from In Defense of Sanity: The Best Essays of G.K. Chesterton | my2cents:
"Or am I seeking to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a slave of Christ."
Please Christ. Please the Lord. It pleases Him to be served what HE loves, not what we love. | We pray: "I will give thanks to the LORD with all my heart in the company and assembly of the just.
Great are the works of the LORD, exquisite in all their delights. The Lord will remember his covenant for ever."
Everything we live for is contingent on God's promise, this whole "for ever" forever thing, right? This calls for a great deal of faith. I'm writing to you to have faith. The Lord is with us, our Lord is with you and me. | Our Lord speaks:
""You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart, with all your being,
with all your strength, and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself."
Is it possible to Love God with everything you got? With all your mind, body, and soul? That my friend, is a call to perfection. And our Lord wouldn't put us through a daunting task without the means to do so, without the way to do it, without the grace availed to us today. | And so the story goes on to the poor, stranded, beat up fellow on the side of the road, robbed, humiliated, perhaps spit upon and left to bleed and die like a worthless animal. The poor man was used, greed tookover, he was abused, pride took over. I'm talking and focusing on the unjust event of what happened to the poor man. Why? Because our Lord was that poor man. Do you see? Can you see Christ in every situation? If you can see Christ in every situation of your life, then you are on your way to perfection, because every situation becomes a calling to Himself. Everyone had an excuse not to help the poor man. What kind of society and religion existed that did not put first the poor and forgotten? Today, things are better than back then. It was a dark age where the light came, the darkest of ages that took a spark of light to grow with time. Things didn't magically change, but progressively, what Christ has become is that spark of life, and truth, to illuminate the proper, just, and merciful way to live, not only in this life, but the real life that is in the forever now. In the Mass on EWTN today, the long time priest (I think Fr. Joseph Mary) said in his homily that we need to remember the ABC of Divine Mercy.
Ask for mercy.
Be merciful.
Completely Trust in Him our Lord Jesus. Lord we pray we can see you in every situation of our life, calling us to you, to perfection, to true compassion, that what leads us to eternal life.
St. Faustina, pray for Divine Mercy on us all! | Random Bible verse from online generator:
Mt 5:8
8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | |
