†Saint Quote
"Reading the Holy Scriptures confers two benefits. It trains the mind to understand them; it turns man's attention from the follies of the world and leads him to the love of God."
–St. Isidore of Seville †Today's Meditation
"Man was created for a certain end. This end is to praise, to reverence and to serve the Lord his God and by this means to arrive at eternal salvation. All other beings and objects that surround us on the earth were created for the benefit of man and to be useful to him, as means to his final end; hence his obligation to use, or to abstain from the use of, these creatures, according as they bring him nearer to that end, or tend to separate him from it."
—St. Ignatius of Loyola, p. 18 An Excerpt From
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius †Daily Verse
"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened."
–Matthew 7:7-8 |  click to read more | | St. Simeon Stylites the Younger (521-596 A.D.) was born in Antioch in ancient Syria (present-day Turkey). Like his namesake and predecessor, Simeon was drawn from a young age to a life of penance and austerity out of his great love for God. His mother was considered a saint. As a young boy he attached himself to a monastery of hermits. Their spiritual director, John, lived night and day at the top of a tall pillar, or "style", within the monastery enclosure. The holy hermits who lived in this manner, separated from the world on top of a pillar, were called "stylites." Simeon the Younger imitated John and lived on a smaller pillar erected near his larger one. Simeon continued to live in this way on three different pillars, each one higher than the next, from boyhood until his death. His final pillar was 12 meters high. During his life he was ordained a deacon and a priest. Disciples gathered around him and would climb a ladder to receive Holy Communion from his hands. He worked many miracles during the course of his life. Hearing of his great sanctity, people came from distant countries for his blessings, cures, prophesies, and spiritual advice. After his death his pillar remained a place of pilgrimage, the ruins of which still exist today. His feast day is May 24. | Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter Lectionary: 292
Reading I Acts 16:22-34 The crowd in Philippi joined in the attack on Paul and Silas,
and the magistrates had them stripped
and ordered them to be beaten with rods.
After inflicting many blows on them,
they threw them into prison
and instructed the jailer to guard them securely.
When he received these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell
and secured their feet to a stake. About midnight, while Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God as the prisoners listened,
there was suddenly such a severe earthquake
that the foundations of the jail shook;
all the doors flew open, and the chains of all were pulled loose.
When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open,
he drew his sword and was about to kill himself,
thinking that the prisoners had escaped.
But Paul shouted out in a loud voice,
"Do no harm to yourself; we are all here."
He asked for a light and rushed in and,
trembling with fear, he fell down before Paul and Silas.
Then he brought them out and said,
"Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus
and you and your household will be saved."
So they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to everyone in his house.
He took them in at that hour of the night and bathed their wounds;
then he and all his family were baptized at once.
He brought them up into his house and provided a meal
and with his household rejoiced at having come to faith in God. Responsorial Psalm 138:1-2ab, 2cde-3, 7c-8 R. (7c) Your right hand saves me, O Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth; in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise;
I will worship at your holy temple, and give thanks to your name.
R. Your right hand saves me, O Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Because of your kindness and your truth, you have made great above all things your name and your promise.
When I called, you answered me; you built up strength within me.
R. Your right hand saves me, O Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Your right hand saves me.
The LORD will complete what he has done for me; your kindness, O LORD, endures forever; forsake not the work of your hands.
R. Your right hand saves me, O Lord.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia See Jn 16:7, 13 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I will send to you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord;
he will guide you to all truth.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 16:5-11 Jesus said to his disciples:
"Now I am going to the one who sent me,
and not one of you asks me, 'Where are you going?'
But because I told you this, grief has filled your hearts.
But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go.
For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you.
But if I go, I will send him to you.
And when he comes he will convict the world
in regard to sin and righteousness and condemnation:
sin, because they do not believe in me;
righteousness, because I am going to the Father
and you will no longer see me;
condemnation, because the ruler of this world has been condemned." | Daily Meditation: John 16:5-11 I will send [the Advocate] to you. (John 16:7) What is your life's purpose? It is said that having a purpose can help us weather the highs and the lows of life. Knowing what our purpose is, we find it easier to soldier on when things get hard. However, we all go through times of transition when our life's purpose may become harder to see or hold on to. These transitions can also help us clarify what our purpose really is. For instance, if you had poured all your energy into your job, you might feel more than a little lost when you retire. If you have built your life completely around raising your children, things might get shaky when they have all grown up and moved away from home. Transitions like these can lead us to ask, What am I supposed to do now? Who am I, anyway? In today's Gospel reading, Jesus is helping his disciples clarify their life's purpose. He knows that his departure has the potential to upset them terribly, so he assures them that he will send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to be with them and guide them. He promises that this Spirit will help them stay focused on their most important purpose in life: to love him and to follow him. St. Teresa of Calcutta once said, "I am a little pencil in God's hands. He does the thinking. He does the writing. He does everything; sometimes it is really hard because it is a broken pencil, and he has to sharpen it a little more." This was her life's purpose, whether she was teaching schoolgirls or feeding the hungry or addressing the United Nations. It can be ours as well. If we make it our life's purpose to be a pencil in God's hands, we can be assured that, whatever we are doing, Jesus will be right there with us, encouraging us and giving us his grace. We can also be assured that if we go off course, his Spirit will be with us to prompt us and bring us back. Even if we are feeling aimless and lacking in direction, we can trust that God will find a way to break in and move us forward. Your life does have a purpose. And it's the most glorious purpose ever: to be united with Christ, here and for eternity! "Jesus, help me to become a pencil in your hand." Acts 16:22-34
Psalm 138:1-3, 7-8 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
""Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you and your household will be saved." Do you believe? I believe there is a way to believe, and it's not just about being obedient. Because it'd seem like some just go through the motions, but what about when it really comes time to believe? This is why I write to you...about faith. So that you may believe more...truly. And in doing so, I may believe more...truly. | We pray in Psalms:
"I will give thanks to you, O LORD, with all my heart, for you have heard the words of my mouth; in the presence of the angels I will sing your praise; I will worship at your holy temple, and give thanks to your name.
Your right hand saves me, O Lord." So, I'm one to talk, right? Because, I'm actively involved in various ministries for God. And it is difficult to talk, or sing, especially if the people seem unmoved. Like a class of 9th graders that seem like they absolutely hate being in class learning about God. Or singing at a funeral or praying and watching people up and walk out in the middle of it. It is not easy, and not all will take to God's word or tend to Him as it shall be in Heaven, where everyone will gladly do so, unlike here on earth, where people are forced to do so and they seem to serve with hatred in their hearts.
Yet, we just prayed I will gave thanks...with ALL my heart.
This thanksgiving is the certitude and attitude to receive Him. People should be grateful that one gives themselves...at least accept it with thanksgiving. But rather, we walk out...on faith. Because there is something dark inside that does not desire light. And so, even in a Mass full of people, I will look to see if anyone is singing, and I see shut mouths, perhaps even shut souls to God. Let this message be to you who are reading this, and all over the world.
Open your mouth, and open your soul...to God, in ThanksGiving. True Worship, calls for humility and openness to God. Then we can speak about faith. | In today's Gospel we heard our Lord:
"But because I told you this, grief has filled your hearts. But I tell you the truth, it is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you." Has God ever said or done something that has caused grief in your heart?
I know of people that lose a loved one...and they lose faith.
Was all the faith in the loved one? More than God?
Where is your faith? In Whom is all your faith? And it shows. | God Sacrificed Himself.
First, through the Son, His own image.
Secondly, the Son sacrificed Himself, so that the Holy Spirit, the Advocate would come. Sometimes we hear of the Advocate, as the Paraclete. These are unusual words for a lay person to understand, and the laity are those who are not clergy, more of a commoner we lay people are.
So what is the Advocate? It is a verb, much like the word Love, it is not an abstract idea, but is a verb, an action, a Being. This is what God can be explained in one way, for He says "I AM WHO AM". Therefore, the Advocate is one who advocates right?
Wikipedia says: "Paraclete (Greek: παράκλητος, Latin: paracletus) means 'advocate' or 'helper'. In Christianity, the term paraclete most commonly refers to the Holy Spirit. The word parakletos is a verbal adjective, often used of one called to help in a lawcourt. In the Jewish tradition the word was transcribed with Hebrew letters and used for angels, prophets, and the just as advocates before God's court. The word also acquired the meaning of 'one who consoles' (cf. Job 16:2, Theodotion's and Aquila's translations; the LXX has the correct word parakletores). It is probably wrong to explain the Johannine parakletos on the basis of only one religious background. The word is filled with a complex meaning: the Spirit replaces Jesus, is an advocate and a witness, but also consoles the disciples.[2]" So can we bring this down to layman's terms finally? LOL.
A lay person needs help. We need God. He is the one to go to for help. He advocates, He helps, He is wisdom, He consoles. The whole world needs HIM! And Thank God Jesus Sent Him to us. I've been in dire need of consolation. We just had another employee fall asleep and crashed their truck and I was called out to the scene. This puts me in extreme duress and stress, and I went to bed that night in tears, silent, bitter tears that only God knows what I said in prayer that night. What's my point? In case you didn't get it, I called my lawyer. I appealed immediately to the one who can advocate before God almighty...Jesus our Lord, our Paraclete. He is the ONLY one who can truly console and vouch for us and help us. And so, my anxious heart was able to sleep.
Faith matters. I don't understand God, nor shall any of us say we can. Does Jesus advocate before God the Father? Isn't He the same? How does Jesus sit at the right hand of God as we pray in the creed? Aren't they the same person?
Well, apparently yes and no. It is like an imparting of self like nothing we'd ever know in this natural world. God has sent Himself in the most tremendous ways, uniting us ever tighter and closer to Him every single time. Can He do it again? It shouldn't surprise us if He does. After all, He can do anything and everything.
The Holy Spirit can penetrate any place and space in time. This goes beyond what our Lord Jesus could do in the body, although He could see through thousands of souls already.
And supposedly we can do that in the next life too, but we've gone too far already. I'll let you go...in faith... | from your brother in Christ,
Adrian |  click to hear | Random bible verse generator: WOW!
2 Corinthians 5:9–10
9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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