† Quote of the Day
"To join two things together there must be nothing between them or there cannot be a perfect fusion. Now realize that this is how God wants our soul to be, without any selfish love of ourselves or of others in between, just as God loves us without anything in between."
— St. Catherine of Siena Today's Meditation
"The soul, who is lifted by a very great and yearning desire for the honor of God and the salvation of souls, begins by exercising herself, for a certain space of time, in the ordinary virtues, remaining in the cell of self-knowledge, in order to know better the goodness of God towards her. This she does because knowledge must precede love, and only when she has attained love, can she strive to follow and to clothe herself with the truth. But, in no way, does the creature receive such a taste of the truth, or so brilliant a light therefrom, as by means of humble and continuous prayer, founded on knowledge of herself and of God; because prayer, exercising her in the above way, unites with God the soul that follows the footprints of Christ Crucified, and thus, by desire and affection, and union of love, makes her another Himself." —St. Catherine of Siena, p.1 Daily Verse
"Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after false gods! Thou hast multiplied, O Lord my God, thy wondrous deeds and thy thoughts toward us; none can compare with thee! Were I to proclaim and tell of them, they would be more than can be numbered."
— Psalm 40:4-5 | St. Catherine Of Siena St. Catherine of Siena (1347–1380) was born in Siena, Italy, the 24th of 25 children born to a wealthy wool dyer and his wife. Catherine began having profound mystical experiences at the age of six which encouraged her in a life of virtue, extreme penance, and total consecration to God through a private vow of virginity. She became a Dominican Tertiary at the age of 16 while continuing to live in the home of her parents. She had regular mystical visits from, and conversations with, Jesus, Mary, and many of the saints. Catherine had no formal education and was illiterate, yet her theological knowledge acquired through prayer astounded learned theologians. She was especially devoted to working for the unity and spiritual health of the Church. Among her most famous accomplishments was that she persuaded the Pope to return to Rome from Avignon in 1377. She also encouraged him to call for a Crusade to the Holy Land. She was an important political figure in her day, often entering into negotiations between warring rulers through personal visits and dictated letters. Her practical wisdom and profound spiritual insight was widely sought both inside and outside the Church. St. Catherine was a great mystic and was granted the stigmata which was made visible only after her death. She died in Rome at the age of 33, offering her life to God for the sanctification of the Church, and was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church in 1970. St. Catherine of Siena is the patron saint of Italy and Europe. Her feast day is April 29th | Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church Readings for the Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor of the Church Reading 1 Acts 14:5-18 There was an attempt in Iconium
by both the Gentiles and the Jews,
together with their leaders,
to attack and stone Paul and Barnabas.
They realized it,
and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe
and to the surrounding countryside,
where they continued to proclaim the Good News. At Lystra there was a crippled man, lame from birth,
who had never walked.
He listened to Paul speaking, who looked intently at him,
saw that he had the faith to be healed,
and called out in a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet."
He jumped up and began to walk about.
When the crowds saw what Paul had done,
they cried out in Lycaonian,
"The gods have come down to us in human form."
They called Barnabas "Zeus" and Paul "Hermes,"
because he was the chief speaker.
And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city,
brought oxen and garlands to the gates,
for he together with the people intended to offer sacrifice. The Apostles Barnabas and Paul tore their garments
when they heard this and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,
"Men, why are you doing this?
We are of the same nature as you, human beings.
We proclaim to you good news
that you should turn from these idols to the living God,
who made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them.
In past generations he allowed all Gentiles to go their own ways;
yet, in bestowing his goodness,
he did not leave himself without witness,
for he gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,
and filled you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts."
Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds
from offering sacrifice to them. Responsorial Psalm Ps 115:1-2, 3-4, 15-16 R. (1ab) Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name give glory
because of your mercy, because of your truth.
Why should the pagans say,
"Where is their God?"
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Our God is in heaven;
whatever he wills, he does.
Their idols are silver and gold,
the handiwork of men.
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
May you be blessed by the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
Heaven is the heaven of the LORD,
but the earth he has given to the children of men.
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia. Alleluia Jn 14:26 R. Alleluia, alleluia.
The Holy Spirit will teach you everything
and remind you of all I told you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia. Gospel Jn 14:21-26 Jesus said to his disciples:
"Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him."
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him,
"Master, then what happened that you will reveal yourself to us
and not to the world?"
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me. "I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit
whom the Father will send in my name --
he will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you."
| DAILY MEDITATION: JOHN 14:21-26
What happened that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world? (John 14:22) Don't you sometimes wish that Jesus would manifest himself in unmistakable terms, showing his reality, his power, and his purposes beyond a shadow of a doubt? In today's Gospel reading, that seems to be what's on the mind of "Judas, not the Iscariot" (John 14:22). If Jesus really did come to establish God's kingdom on earth, why wasn't this the right time to make some grand gesture to convince the whole world who he was? The answer is that Jesus wants to reveal his love to each person individually. Relationship is the key to revelation. That's why, in this brief dialogue, he uses the word "love" no fewer than seven times. He explains to Judas, "Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him" (John 14:23). It's more than knowing the fact that Jesus loved you enough to die for you. It's experiencing that love as you gaze at a crucifix and see how much he suffered or as you treasure his presence after you receive him in the Eucharist. That kind of personal encounter changes everything! In a similar way, there is a vast difference between knowing about a person and getting to know him. You don't get to know someone only by learning his age, his address, or where he works. Ultimately, it's love that opens the way to the most important and intimate kind of knowledge. Just think about a couple who have been married for many years. Their love has given them a much deeper understanding of each other than when they were first married. This is the kind of relationship that Jesus offers each of us. He is inviting us to come to know him and experience his love. He wants more than grand gestures; he wants to dwell in us, to bring us into friendship with him, and to teach us to abide in his love. "Jesus, thank you for loving me. Lord, reveal yourself to me more and more!" Acts 14:5-18
Psalm 115:1-4, 15-16 |  try to hear it read by AI | Reflections with Brother Adrian: | In the Holy Scripture we hear today:
"Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me........" end quote. | . From Bishop Barron today;
"Friends, we see in our Gospel reading that the Holy Spirit's principal sign is love. The night before he died, Jesus told his friends the deepest truths. He spoke of himself, his Father, and the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is the love that connects the Father and the Son. From all eternity, he is breathed back and forth between the Father and the Son, and hence he is nothing but love. When, therefore, he comes to dwell in you and me, he turns us to the path of love. "On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father." God has created a dynamic universe, moving restlessly and relentlessly toward a goal, and this goal has been disclosed to us in Christ: the sharing in the love between the Father and the Son. Therefore, if we wish to know the creaturely realm in all of its complexity and multiplicity, in both its coming and going, we must immerse ourselves in the stream of the Spiritus Sanctus." End quote Bishop Barron. Once one of my godson asked me "how can I show God that I love Him?"
I responded that we must obey His commands.
Today our Lord says it again ""Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me."
There are some that I know that say they believe in God...some even tattooed bible scriptures on themselves....but they are living in sin.
Is this showing God that you love Him as you proclaim one thing and do another?
And as I speak about others...I speak about myself.
Am I not really living what I proclaim?
The tough part is having one sinner admonish the next.
Who has the "right" to tell another anything? That's the devil stance.
If that is the case...in that train of thought...then all must cease to proclaim the Word of God...for everyone is a sinner. Right?
Wrong. There is one greater in the world that speaks and lives and breathes among us....it is the Holy Spirit. He speaks through imperfect sinners.
When the message is good and follows the commands of God...then it is good and of the Holy Spirit. Therefore we should not throw out the baby with the bath water.
If you are criticized to cone to the Lord...it is good. We may not like it...but a cold bucket of truth sometimes has to wake us up.
Warm comfortable baths aren't always what we need. Lord open my lips and my heart to let you live and breathe and speak through me...and let me listen as the words come forth so that we may Love Thee ever more. |  Click for Audio | Random Bible Vers | If one day you don't receive these, just visit Going4th.com
God Bless You! Peace | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment