†Saint Quote
""We must faithfully keep what we have promised. If through human weakness we fail, we must always without delay arise again by means of holy penance, and give our attention to leading a good life and to dying a holy death. May the Father of all mercy, the Son by his holy passion, and the Holy Spirit, source of peace, sweetness and love, fill us with their consolation."
— St. Colette † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"Others, again, seeing their own imperfections, become angry with themselves with an impatience that is not humble. They are so impatient with their shortcomings as if they would be saints in one day. Many of these make many grand resolutions, but, being self-confident and not humble, the more they resolve, the more they fall, and the more angry they become; not having the patience to wait for God's time; this is also opposed to spiritual meekness. There is no perfect remedy for this but in the dark night. There are, however, some people who are so patient, and who advance so slowly in their spiritual progress, that God wishes they were not so patient."
— St. John of the Cross, p. 24
AN EXCERPT FROM
Dark Night of the Soul †VERSE OF THE DAY
"Let love be sincere; hate what is evil, hold on to what is good love one another with mutual affection; anticipate one another in showing honor. Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the holy ones, exercise hospitality."
Romans 12:9-13 |  click to read more | | ST. EDWIN St. Edwin (585-633 A.D.) was the son of the pagan King of Deira who reigned in present-day England. After his father was deposed from his throne, Edwin spent his childhood in exile to escape rival kings who considered his bloodline a threat to their rule. One day a stranger prophesied that Edwin would reclaim his father's throne if he promised to obey what would later be taught to him regarding his own eternal salvation. Eventually Edwin rose to power and regained the Kingdom of Deira which expanded to encompass all of Northumbria. After the death of his first wife, he married a Catholic princess. He permitted his wife to practice her faith freely and to have their children baptized. He also welcomed St. Paulinus, Archbishop of York, into his kingdom and accepted his religious instruction. Edwin became increasingly drawn to Christianity after a series of providential events, but he did not convert until St. Paulinus revealed to Edwin that he was the same stranger who, years before, prophesied about his future. Edwin then repented of his sins, accepted baptism, and became an exemplary Catholic king who contributed to the spread of Christianity across his kingdom. St. Edwin died in battle against a pagan army and is therefore considered to be a martyr for the Faith. His feast day is October 12. | Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 468
Reading I Rom 1:16-25 Brothers and sisters:
I am not ashamed of the Gospel.
It is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes:
for Jew first, and then Greek.
For in it is revealed the righteousness of God from faith to faith;
as it is written, "The one who is righteous by faith will live." The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven
against every impiety and wickedness
of those who suppress the truth by their wickedness.
For what can be known about God is evident to them,
because God made it evident to them.
Ever since the creation of the world,
his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity
have been able to be understood and perceived in what he has made.
As a result, they have no excuse;
for although they knew God
they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks.
Instead, they became vain in their reasoning,
and their senseless minds were darkened.
While claiming to be wise, they became fools
and exchanged the glory of the immortal God
for the likeness of an image of mortal man
or of birds or of four-legged animals or of snakes. Therefore, God handed them over to impurity
through the lusts of their hearts
for the mutual degradation of their bodies.
They exchanged the truth of God for a lie
and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator,
who is blessed forever. Amen. Responsorial Psalm 19:2-3, 4-5 R. (2a) The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to day, and night to night imparts knowledge.
R. The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
Not a word nor a discourse whose voice is not heard;
Through all the earth their voice resounds, and to the ends of the world, their message.
R. The heavens proclaim the glory of God. Alleluia Heb 4:12 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The word of God is living and effective,
able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 11:37-41 After Jesus had spoken,
a Pharisee invited him to dine at his home.
He entered and reclined at table to eat.
The Pharisee was amazed to see
that he did not observe the prescribed washing before the meal.
The Lord said to him, "Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you." | Daily Meditation: Luke 11:37-41 As to what is within, give alms, and behold, everything will be clean for you. (Luke 11:41) A Pharisee invited Jesus to his home for dinner but was scandalized when Jesus failed to observe the prescribed hand-washing ritual. Jesus responded with some harsh words—something you wouldn't ordinarily expect from an invited houseguest! But it didn't matter to Jesus; he was trying to drive home a point. He wanted his disciples, and all those listening, to understand what true piety consists of. It's more than outward actions; it has to do with the state our hearts as well. And in order to purify our hearts, Jesus said, we should give alms. But how does giving alms make us "clean" (Luke 11:41)? Let's consider the Pharisees' situation. If they had taken Jesus' words to heart, it would have altered their focus. Instead of criticizing Jesus for not following the letter of the law, they would have focused on the needs of the people around them. Their vision would have expanded beyond rules and regulations to the heart of the law. While still observing Jewish law, they could have made themselves even more "clean" by pouring themselves out for the poor and needy. The same is true for us. When we give alms—whether it's our time, our energy, or our money—we can approach it as a way of handing over to God something that is precious to us. If we come to Jesus with a generous willingness to give over to him what is ours, we might be surprised at what happens within us. Perhaps we will experience a new freedom to see our world and the people around us with the eyes of Christ. This new vision will move us to be more generous toward the people we encounter at work, in our neighborhoods, and even within our own families. And this new freedom will prompt us to follow Jesus more closely so that we can better do what he is asking of us. Today, let's ask the Lord to grant us the willingness to give alms cheerfully and eagerly so that we might step into this new freedom with him. "Jesus, help me to focus on the people who need my help. Cleanse my heart so that I can experience a new freedom in you." Romans 1:16-25
Psalm 19:2-5run away from his calling the way Jonah did (Jonah 1:3). Rather, he loved and fully embraced the will of his Father by inviting us to receive God's forgiveness and mercy. That was, and still is, his mission—to call each of us, God's beloved children, to turn back to the Father. That's what Jesus meant by the "sign of Jonah" (Luke 11:29): God himself, in the midst of his people, calling them to return to him. The sign isn't just the miracles of healing or the multiplication of fish and loaves. It's not even people being raised from the dead. All those point us to Jesus, the perfect sign of the Father's love. Just as he did for that crowd all those years ago, he is inviting you to turn to him, be forgiven, and receive him as your Lord. "Jesus, I accept your invitation! I want to receive your mercy and forgiveness today." Romans 1:1-7
Psalm 98:1-4 |  Listen to 2cents | From Today's Holy Scripture:
"As a result, they have no excuse;
for although they knew God
they did not accord him glory as God or give him thanks.
Instead, they became vain in their reasoning,
and their senseless minds were darkened." Have you ever met a smart person with a disgusting heart? Suddenly they don't seem very smart, right?
Yet, that's how we are when we sin. You eat of the fruit of knowledge, the apple, and then spit the core and seeds into the Creator's face.
A senseless mind is darkened by sin. I see how sin pulls people apart. I see how it pulls one from God Himself. I see how it can turn a good person to bad. Suddenly, all spiritual realms must take note.
What happened before the fall?
What happened before vanity? The people forgot thanksgiving. The people did not give Him glory. And so we can surmise that thanksgiving is glory. | We pray in Psalms:
"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to day, and night to night imparts knowledge." Day pours light. What does this mean?
What do we pray in the creed? True light from true light, right? What does this mean? Truth from truth, life from life, right?
And the inverse is true. The perverse. Darkness imparts to night. What you cannot see and what is not right. And the errors are flamboyantly displayed with great pride in the air today. And so what is darkness? A departure from light.
And what is light? Jesus.
The message is clear, that we must be children of the light. | Our Lord speaks, the TRUTH speaks:
"The Lord said to him, "Oh you Pharisees!
Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish,
inside you are filled with plunder and evil.
You fools!
Did not the maker of the outside also make the inside?
But as to what is within, give alms,
and behold, everything will be clean for you." | The Pharisees were supposed to be some pretty good and faithful followers...of... the law. The Mosaic law was everything to them. But, as good as the law was...it had a flaw. It began to miss the mark of God's imprint on man. And so the Son of Man had to enter. It's funny, that the origins of the word "sin" actually means to "miss the mark". And for this reason God had to enter the world, because we had missed the mark. And we will always miss the mark if we deviate from Him.
Perhaps they were too political. The Sadducee were heavily involved in politics, and they were supposed to be helping the Jews but they were missing the mark. Perhaps they had a heavy hand in having our Lord sacrificed, in the name of power, in the name of vanity, all things heavily sought in politics.
The Pharisees were supposed to be better than that, they even followed Jesus and seemingly questioned His every move. This type of follower eventually missed the mark too, because they failed to see and recognize the Messiah before their very eyes.
And then, you will find the less spoken of, and extremists of holiness, and were set apart off in the hills and deserts...and they say St. John the Baptist and Mother Mary were of this Jewish sect, the Essenes. These believed in Jesus, and I would declare that this is how Israel was saved...through the truly faithful to God. I have digressed, or have I? Our Lord calls the Pharisees fools, to the very people that had invited Him to eat.
And there is no better word than "fools" for the situation. Because all of our lives we build and build upon something...but what if your foundation...has no foundation? You have built a tower on sand! And sand is unstable, and the building is in danger.
Fools. We are all fools when we think we are so right that we need to point the finger at someone to oust them.
I remember once, a foolish moment, aside from the thousands daily, that I saw a man walk into church with large dark sunglasses. I said to myself "that's not right, he needs to know that he can't be wearing them, I need to tell him something right now". And so I did. I told him about his glasses, and he apologized profusely, saying he had just had eye surgery and he showed me his wounds, and then I apologized profusely, felt like an idiot. Then I didn't really see them much at church anymore for years, until this weekend at our Family Festival which I've been frantically working on for weeks. I saw them, he was right there with his wife smiling, with no sun glasses on a bright sunny day.
And you?
How often do you get that nasty attitude, of "oh that isn't right" and it boils inside of you?
It's hard to be a Franciscan at that point right? When St. Francis prays "O Lord, let me not be understood, but to understand", and "let me not be consoled, but let me console (others)".
In this kind of prayer to God, you are asking to be the least and last.
Now we are hitting the mark. Now you are leading to the cross. Now you are being the extremist in holiness. Now you are being light from light.
I put myself in timeout (with God) yesterday night, because I've been a worry wart Martha lately. And I sat in my kids' homeschool room, and found myself staring at a poster that said THINK.
Think before you talk, or move, or even think!
Are your thoughts:
Thoughtful
Helpful
Important
Necessary
Kind Let's pray:
Jesus,
My Lord, My God, My all,
how can I love you as I ought?
And how revere this wondrous gift,
so far surpassing hope and thought,
Sweet Sacrament! we Thee adore!
O, make us love Thee more and more!
Had I but Mary's sinless heart
To love Thee with, my dearest King!
O with what bursts of fervent praise
Thy goodness, Jesus, would I sing! Help us be grateful, thankful, and truly Give Thee Honor and Glory, both now and forever. amen
| from your brother in Christ,
Adrian |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: James 1:13–14 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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