†Saint Quote
"O Sacred Heart of Jesus, fountain of eternal life, Your Heart is a glowing furnace of Love. You are my refuge and my sanctuary."
–St. Gertrude the Great †Today's Meditation
"The beatitude of the saints is immutable, like that of the Son of God. . . Add ages to ages; multiply them equal to the sand of the ocean or the stars of heaven; exhaust all numbers, if you can, beyond what the human intelligence can conceive, and for the elect there will be still the same eternity of happiness. They are immutable, and this immutability excludes weariness and disgust. The life of an elect soul is one succession, without end, of desires ever arising and ever satisfied, but desires without trouble, satiety or lassitude. The elect will always see God, love God, possess God and always will wish to see Him, love Him and possess Him still more. This beatitude is the end destined for all; God has given us time only in order to merit it, being and life only to possess it. Reflect seriously on this great truth, and ask yourself these three questions at the foot of the crucifix: What have I done hitherto for heaven? What ought I to do for heaven? What shall I do henceforward for heaven?"
—St. Ignatius of Loyola, p. 179 An Excerpt From
The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius ✟Daily Verse
"I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world."
–John 6:51 |  click to read more | | St. Gertrude the Great St. Gertrude the Great (1256-1302), also known as Gertrude of Helfta, was born on the feast of Epiphany in Thuringia (modern Germany). She was sent to be educated at the Benedictine monastery in Helfta at the age of four or five, possibly as an orphan or as a child dedicated to God by her parents. She proved to be an extremely bright and determined student who became engrossed in her secular studies, but was negligent of her prayer life. She remained in the monastery and made her profession as a nun. At the age of 26 she entered a time of spiritual crisis, after which she began to receive visions of Christ who chastised her for not leaving room for God in her academic pursuits. This caused Gertrude to abandon her secular studies in total devotion to Sacred Scripture and the works of the Church Fathers. These theological studies, along with continued visions and messages from Jesus, became the basis of her work as one of the great writers and mystics of the 13th century. St. Gertrude had a lasting impact on the Church in an age where academic and religious literature was dominated by men, and she is the only female saint to earn the title "The Great." She was one of the early saints who, along with her companion in the monastery, St. Mechtilde of Hackeborn, spread devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. St. Teresa of Avila chose St. Gertrude the Great, the patron saint of nuns, as her model and guide. Her feast day is November 16th. | Wednesday of the Thirty-third Week in Ordinary Time Lectionary: 499
Reading 1 Rv 4:1-11 I, John, had a vision of an open door to heaven,
and I heard the trumpetlike voice
that had spoken to me before, saying,
"Come up here and I will show you what must happen afterwards."
At once I was caught up in spirit.
A throne was there in heaven, and on the throne sat one
whose appearance sparkled like jasper and carnelian.
Around the throne was a halo as brilliant as an emerald.
Surrounding the throne I saw twenty-four other thrones
on which twenty-four elders sat,
dressed in white garments and with gold crowns on their heads.
From the throne came flashes of lightning,
rumblings, and peals of thunder.
Seven flaming torches burned in front of the throne,
which are the seven spirits of God.
In front of the throne was something that resembled
a sea of glass like crystal. In the center and around the throne,
there were four living creatures
covered with eyes in front and in back.
The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf,
the third had a face like that of a man,
and the fourth looked like an eagle in flight.
The four living creatures, each of them with six wings,
were covered with eyes inside and out.
Day and night they do not stop exclaiming:
"Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty,
who was, and who is, and who is to come."
Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks
to the one who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever,
the twenty-four elders fall down
before the one who sits on the throne
and worship him, who lives forever and ever.
They throw down their crowns before the throne, exclaiming: "Worthy are you, Lord our God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things;
because of your will they came to be and were created." Responsorial Psalm 150:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6 R. (1b) Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God!
Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for his sovereign majesty.
R. Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God!
Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
praise him with strings and pipe.
R. Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God!
Praise him with sounding cymbals,
praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD! Alleluia.
R. Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God! Alleluia See Jn 15:16 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I chose you from the world,
to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Lk 19:11-28 While people were listening to Jesus speak,
he proceeded to tell a parable because he was near Jerusalem
and they thought that the Kingdom of God
would appear there immediately.
So he said,
"A nobleman went off to a distant country
to obtain the kingship for himself and then to return.
He called ten of his servants and gave them ten gold coins
and told them, 'Engage in trade with these until I return.'
His fellow citizens, however, despised him
and sent a delegation after him to announce,
'We do not want this man to be our king.'
But when he returned after obtaining the kingship,
he had the servants called, to whom he had given the money,
to learn what they had gained by trading.
The first came forward and said,
'Sir, your gold coin has earned ten additional ones.'
He replied, 'Well done, good servant!
You have been faithful in this very small matter;
take charge of ten cities.'
Then the second came and reported,
'Your gold coin, sir, has earned five more.'
And to this servant too he said,
'You, take charge of five cities.'
Then the other servant came and said,
'Sir, here is your gold coin;
I kept it stored away in a handkerchief,
for I was afraid of you, because you are a demanding man;
you take up what you did not lay down
and you harvest what you did not plant.'
He said to him,
'With your own words I shall condemn you,
you wicked servant.
You knew I was a demanding man,
taking up what I did not lay down
and harvesting what I did not plant;
why did you not put my money in a bank?
Then on my return I would have collected it with interest.'
And to those standing by he said,
'Take the gold coin from him
and give it to the servant who has ten.'
But they said to him,
'Sir, he has ten gold coins.'
He replied, 'I tell you,
to everyone who has, more will be given,
but from the one who has not,
even what he has will be taken away.
Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king,
bring them here and slay them before me.'" After he had said this,
he proceeded on his journey up to Jerusalem. | Daily Meditation: Revelation 4:1-11 Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty! (Revelation 4:8) Have you ever been part of a choir? Or maybe you have joined an enthusiastic crowd in a stadium as they belted out the national anthem? It can be a rousing experience. So consider this: God has invited you to join the biggest choir ever! Where is this choir? It's present every time Mass is celebrated—but you might not see all the singers. The priest even mentions this choir at the beginning of the Eucharistic Prayer: "With angels and archangels, with thrones and dominions, and with all the hosts and powers of heaven, we sing the hymn" of God's glory. With them! At every single Mass, millions of saints and angels come and join us—not in silent contemplation, but in joyful songs of worship to our saving God. "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty!" (Revelation 4:8). You've probably sung these words hundreds of times at Mass. And yet as joyous as they are, it can be easy to gloss over them and let other concerns distract you. Maybe the petitions in the Prayer of the Faithful have caused you to start mulling over your own needs and concerns. Then, before you know it, the Eucharistic Prayer is over, and instead of being lifted into the heavens, you feel as if you've come farther down to earth. It doesn't have to be this way! All of heaven is opened to you at every single Mass. Jesus, the Lamb of God, is there. So is your heavenly Father, who is looking on you with love and joy. Your family members and ancestors who have already passed from this life in friendship with the Lord are there as well. So are Mary, Peter, John, and all the other saints and heroes of our faith. Let their prayers lift you up. During every Mass, your church, however humble it may seem, is transformed into a gleaming sanctuary. The people around you, however imperfect they (and you) are, stand bathed in heavenly glory. If only for those few moments, let the cares of this life melt away. Lift up your heart to the Lord! "Lord, you have always been, and you always will be, the eternal God and my heavenly Father. Praise be to you forever!" Psalm 150:1-6
Luke 19:11-28 | From today's 1st Holy Scripture:
""Worthy are you, Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things; because of your will they came to be and were created." Do you know that you can give honor and glory to God and that this is crucial to life? This is what is happening in Heaven, glory is being given to God continually. If this is done in Heaven, then all the more it should be done on earth, for we are less than Heaven as we speak. | We pray today;
_"Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
praise him in the firmament of his strength.
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
praise him for his sovereign majesty. Holy, holy, holy Lord, mighty God! | In the Gospel today we heard our Master and Teacher:
" 'I tell you, to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me as their king, bring them here and slay them before me.'" There is something in the world that is leading as the false guides, and the guise is "progressivism". To be more progressive, you must be more liberal, and to be more liberal, in essence, you want less and less laws to tell you what to do, until you have nothing to do, and this is terrible because in the end, you sell your soul to the darkness, and darkness is absence of light, and the absence of light is the absence of truth, and the absence of truth is the absence of God. And so, it is literally...do or die.
Either you will follow the light or not.
Either you will live or not.
Either we will do His will or do what we want.
There exists in the world a vile hatred for all things religion, and if we are passive about this, then, the hatred will grow. But if we not permissive, and if we are doing God's will, the haters' fire can be quenched with the baptism of God's love. And we must recall, we cannot be in the middle. We cannot be neutral. Either you are living the life of Christ, or we are not.
Either I'm practicing sacrificial love...or I am not.
Either I am dying to do God's will or I am avoiding death at all costs.
I hope these words light the fire of doing God's will. The picture Jesus paints today with the Kingship, is a story of Himself going to Jerusalem to be crowned King with a crown of thorns. Let Love speak louder than words.
For God so loved the world that He gave us His only Son. | ........................................
Lord, what You have done is amazing. Your sacrificial love will never be forgotten inside of me...and may this serve as fuel for my Love of Thee.
............................................... adrian |  click to hear | Random Bible Verse 1
2 Corinthians 3:4–6 [2 Corinthians 3] 4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
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