 franciscanmedia.org | Feeling Powerless? Powerlessness, the state of the shipwrecked, is an experience we all share anyway, if we are sincere, but Bill Wilson [founder of AA] found we are not very good at that either. He called it "denial." It seems we are not that free to be honest, or even aware, because most of our garbage is buried in the unconscious. So it is absolutely essential that we find a spirituality that reaches to that hidden level. If not, nothing really changes. —from the book Breathing Under Water: Spirituality and the Twelve Steps by Richard Rohr, OFM |  MorningOffering.com | †Saint Quote
"Build an oratory within yourself, and there have Jesus on the altar of your heart. Speak to Him often while you are doing your work. Speak to Him of His holy love, of His holy sufferings and of the sorrows of most holy Mary."
— St Paul of the Cross † MEDITATION OF THE DAY
"Consider not only that God your benefactor is present but also that He acts continuously in all His creatures. And for whom is this continual action, this work of God in nature? For you. Thus, He lights you by the light of day; He nourishes you with the productions of the earth; in a word, He serves you by each one of the creatures that you use; so that it is true to say that at every moment the bounty, the wisdom and the power of God are at your service and are exercised in the world for your wants or pleasures. This conduct of God toward man should be the model of your conduct toward God. You see that the presence of God in His creatures is never idle; it acts incessantly, it preserves, it governs. Beware, then, of stopping at a sterile contemplation of God present in yourself. Add action to contemplation; to the sight of the Divine presence add the faithful accomplishment of the Divine will."
— St. Ignatius, p. 182
AN EXCERPT FROM
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius ⛪ TODAY'S FEAST DAY OUR LADY OF LOURDES
On February 11, 1858, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to fourteen-year-old Bernadette Soubiroux in the hollow rock of Massabielle in southern France. That year Bernadette would report a total of 18 apparitions of a woman she described as "lovelier than I have ever seen." The woman in the vision revealed herself as the "Immaculate Conception," in confirmation of this dogma of the Catholic faith which was infallibly defined by the Holy Father just four years previous. Our Lady told Bernadette to drink from an unseen fountain at the grotto, and called for a chapel to be built there. When Bernadette scratched at the ground, a stream of pure spring water surged forth. This stream demonstrated healing properties, and it continues to draw pilgrims to the grotto from around the globe. A basilica was built upon the rock of the Massabielle in response to Our Lady's request, and in 1876 it was consecrated as the "Church of the Rosary." Due to the multitudes of medically documented miraculous healings, the shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in France is one of the most visited pilgrimage sites in the world.
See More About Today's Feast > † VERSE OF THE DAY
"Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, from my mouth has gone forth in righteousness a word that shall not return: 'To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.'" Isaiah 45:22-23 |  click to read more | | SAINT OF THE DAY BL. BARTHOLOMEW OF OLMEDO
Blessed Bartholomew of Olmedo (1485-1524) was a Spanish Mercedarian priest, and the first priest to arrive on Mexican soil in 1516 at the age of 31. He was chaplain for the expedition of Spanish Conquistador Fernando Cortés, who began the Spanish colonization of the Americas and the downfall of the Aztec empire. Bartholomew was well-liked by the native people. He taught them the Christian faith and exhorted them to end their practice of human sacrifice. He also defended them against injustice and restrained Cortés from acting out in violence against them. Bartholomew taught the native Mexicans devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Mercy, which they embraced. Blessed Bartholomew of Olmedo baptized more than 2500 people before he died in Mexico in 1524 at the age of 39. He was buried in Santiago de Tlatelolco. His feast day is February 11. | Thursday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 332
Reading I Gn 2:18-25 The LORD God said:
"It is not good for the man to be alone.
I will make a suitable partner for him."
So the LORD God formed out of the ground
various wild animals and various birds of the air,
and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them;
whatever the man called each of them would be its name.
The man gave names to all the cattle,
all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals;
but none proved to be the suitable partner for the man. So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man,
and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs
and closed up its place with flesh.
The LORD God then built up into a woman
the rib that he had taken from the man.
When he brought her to the man, the man said: "This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called 'woman,' for out of 'her man' this one has been taken." That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife,
and the two of them become one flesh. The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame. Responsorial Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5 R. (see 1a) Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Blessed are you who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the recesses of your home;
Your children like olive plants around your table.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord.
Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears the LORD.
The LORD bless you from Zion: may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
R. Blessed are those who fear the Lord. Alleluia Jas 1:21bc R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you
and is able to save your souls.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Mk 7:24-30 Jesus went to the district of Tyre.
He entered a house and wanted no one to know about it,
but he could not escape notice.
Soon a woman whose daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him.
She came and fell at his feet.
The woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by birth,
and she begged him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
He said to her, "Let the children be fed first.
For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs."
She replied and said to him,
"Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps."
Then he said to her, "For saying this, you may go.
The demon has gone out of your daughter."
When the woman went home, she found the child lying in bed
and the demon gone. | Daily Meditation: Genesis 2:18-25 It is not good for the man to be alone. (Genesis 2:18) From childhood, we have heard the story of how God took a rib from Adam's side and fashioned Eve from that rib. "It is not good for the man to be alone," God says (Genesis 2:18). God knew Adam's need, as a human creature, for a suitable partner, a companion and equal, and he satisfied that need. But he did a lot of creating before he fashioned Eve. He made all kinds of birds and animals as well. Now surely God knew that the rhinoceros and the ostrich would not make suitable partners for man; that sheep, goats, and oxen, however useful, were not actually the kind of companion Adam would need most. Adam's longing was for someone like himself who could offer friendship and human companionship. But God knew that Adam would need all kinds of help in order to cultivate and care for the garden. And so he went above and beyond Adam's primary need and gave him far more than he asked for or imagined. This is how God deals with us too. Sometimes you ask God to provide for something you need—something powerful like a horse or nutritious like a bunch of fruit trees—and you find a rhino on your doorstep instead, or maybe a sweet woolly lamb. Did God get confused? Is he refusing the good thing you asked for and giving you something else? Of course not. God knows what you need before you ask him (Matthew 6:8). It's quite possible he is giving you something he knows that you need even before you know to ask for it. Tell God today that you believe in his love and care for you. He knows all your needs, and he wants to give you every good thing to meet those needs. If you have asked him for something and think he hasn't answered you, reread today's first reading. Ponder God's response to Adam's need for a suitable companion, and then ask the Holy Spirit to show you how he is answering you. Refuse to entertain thoughts that say God doesn't hear, doesn't care, or won't respond. Declare aloud your trust in his wisdom and timing for your life. (Then ask him what to do with the rhinoceros!) "Father, I believe in your perfect love for me!" Psalm 128:1-5
Mark 7:24-30 |  clickable | I shall spend every moment loving. One who loves does not notice her trials; or perhaps more accurately, she is able to love them.
— St. Bernadette Soubirous
from the private notes of St. Bernadette, collected in the book A Holy Life | my2cents:
"That is why a man leaves his father and mother
and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one flesh."
The man clings to his wife, and then they become one flesh. And the next verse says they were naked and not ashamed. Naked in innocence, until they were shamed for disobeying. What was precious, was lost. Innocence lost. Now they would know...what shame is. And to this day, we fight for innocence, and the innocents. The world wants you to give up on your fight, but they are relentless in their fight. They say for you to be neutral, but they are not. To this day, we hold this naked truth to be exalted...purity, and holiness. We, of the light, fight for what is right. Not with arms or violence, but with the sword of truth. | Today we pray: "Blessed are you who fear the LORD, who walk in his ways!
For you shall eat the fruit of your handiwork; blessed shall you be, and favored. " So what kind of fear does shame produce? It produces pride. The kind that says "if you don't love me, I don't love you either". This shame comes from hell. I can't forget the life and death experience of a guy that said he went to hell, and saw this huge figure of the devil with horns and sitting on vast amounts of gold, and the figure acted as if he did not exist. This is not love. On the contrary, our Lord created you into existence, to care for you, and has even saved some from the clutches of hell. In one thought, you matter, all things matter to Him. | Our Lord spoke to a woman pleading for her possessed daughter: ""Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." Wow! Did our Lord just call this woman a dog? If you study scripture, you can see how or why this comes to be. Her "people" ultimately were from Cana, from which we get the word dogs eventually, and these were those who had rejected the people of God. Our Lord comes to the righteous, but in the end we hear Him cave in to those even in darkness, the gentiles: | She replied and said to him,
"Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps."
Then he said to her, "For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter."
What does this passage say to you inside? Does it move you, does it hit home? Or not? Whence the Word strikes you with truth and love in the heart, you are that clay He aims to create a new being with you and in you and through you.
He can. And He will.
Now, does this mean He is speaking about the Eucharist too? The doors are open for all to come. It is the world and oneself that decides to not go to the open doors and close them on self. The Eucharist is available if you desire Him. He is the bread, He is the Word, and He is the Word turned into flesh. All you have to do, is surrender. All you have to do, is beg. All you have to do, is obey. All you have to do, is desire Him above all.
And He comes through. I promise His promise comes true.
Luke 11:12
"11What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"…
He cannot do anything but Good, and He is Good. Ask then for the Good. Lord, You are amazing. I ask for the good to enter my life, I ask for the good for my soul and the world to enter. I ask for You to be made one with me. Just like Adam and Eve, and together, bring life to the world! | from your brother in Christ our Lord,
adrian | Random online bible verse:
AMEN!
2 Corinthians 4:7–10
Treasure in Jars of Clay 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
