October 1 SAINT THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS Virgin and Doctor of the Church
Feast
Thérèse Martin was born at Alencon in 1873. At the age of fifteen she entered the Carmel at Lisieux. She practiced heroic humility, evangelical simplicity and trust in God, and taught the novices these virtues by word and example. She offered her life for the salvation of souls and the growth of the Church. She died September 30, 1897.
Invitatory
Ant. The Lord reveals himself to little ones; come, let us worship him.
Invitatory psalm, as in the Ordinary.
Office of Readings
Hymn
Let all who lovingly avow
Those gifts the Christ Child came to share
Acclaim Thérèse’s virtues now
And praise her name in song and prayer.
Her patroness and mother chose
The lofty peaks of Carmel’s height
And there Thérèse in fervor goes
To follow Christ, her one delight.
St. Michael the Archangel,
defend us in battle.
Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou,
O Prince of the heavenly hosts,
by the power of God,
thrust into hell Satan,
and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world
seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. .
O glorious prince St. Michael,
chief and commander of the heavenly hosts,
guardian of souls, vanquisher of rebel spirits,
servant in the house of the Divine King
and our admirable conductor,
you who shine with excellence
and superhuman virtue deliver us from all evil,
who turn to you with confidence
and enable us by your gracious protection
to serve God more and more faithfully every day.
Consecration to St. Michael:
Saint Michael the Archangel, invincible Prince of the Angelic hosts and glorious protector of the universal Church, I greet thee and praise thee for that splendor with which God has adorned thee so richly. I thank God for the great graces He hast bestowed upon thee, especially to remain faithful when Satan and his followers rebelled, and to battle victoriously for the honor of God and the Divinity of the Son of Man.
Saint Michael, I consecrate to thee __________________. I choose thee as our patron and protector and entrust the salvation of my soul to thy care. Be the guardian of my obligation as a child of God and of the Catholic Church as again I renounce Satan, his works and pomps.
Assist me by thy powerful intercession in the fulfillment of these sacred promises, so that imitating thy courage and loyalty to God, and trusting in thy kind help and protection, I may be victorious over the enemies of my soul and be united with God in Heaven forever. Amen.
Often times when we think we are fighting the evil we face, we take the same path Saul (Before becoming St. Paul) took, and use a force we assume is that of our Lord, when it truly is not.
The communication on social media lately, proves this as comments become heated, tempers flare and charity (love for God and neighbor) is tossed aside for the road of MY FEELINGS is taken instead.
As you meander through social media today, tomorrow and always, I ask you to take a look at who you are addressing with this in mind. When you speak to anyone, speak as if you are addressing our Lord. Its not to say that it is, but each soul has been created in the image of God, and when we respect this fact, our tongues are held when malice seeks to be spouted rather than charity. Each of us is on this journey. Be mindful of this, that you may be further up, or further back from the one you are addressing, but the reality is, the journey does end and we must work to be the good and faithful servant of our Lord.
Something to ponder today, this entire chapter of Catechism of the Catholic Church:
Human society must primarily be considered something pertaining to the spiritual. Through it, in the bright light of truth, men should share their knowledge, be able to exercise their rights and fulfill their obligations, be inspired to seek spiritual values; mutually derive genuine pleasure from the beautiful, of whatever order it be; always be readily disposed to pass on to others the best of their own cultural heritage; and eagerly strive to make their own the spiritual achievements of others. These benefits not only influence, but at the same time give aim and scope to all that has bearing on cultural expressions, economic, and social institutions, political movements and forms, laws, and all other structures by which society is outwardly established and constantly developed. – CA 36 § 2.
If you have had an abortion or are suffering due to your partner having one, please know you are not alone. What you have done, is forgivable. If you are Catholic, please seek our Lord in the Confessional. He will help you heal.
Rachel’s Vineyard is a safe place to renew, rebuild and redeem hearts broken by abortion. Weekend retreats offer you a supportive, confidential and non-judgmental environment where women and men can express, release and reconcile painful post-abortive emotions to begin the process of restoration, renewal and healing.
“Blessed are you who are poor, for the Kingdom of God is yours. Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.
“Rejoice and leap for joy on that day! Behold, your reward will be great in heaven. For their ancestors treated the prophets in the same way. But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. But woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will grieve and weep. Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.”
Tomorrow’s (September 12, 2019), is what can be found on the page of the bible found at Ground Zero, on March 30, 2002. HERE
Paper from a Bible, fused to a piece of steel, was found in the debris shortly after 9/11 by a fireman and given to photographer Joel Meyerowitz. In 2010, he gave it to the September 11 Memorial Museum.
“See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ” (Col 2:8).
I have been reading this story for the past few days, regarding the man who took his own life in Seattle. I have read his personal social media posts regarding his ordeal with terminal illness and other struggles and what is very clear cut about this man to me, from my perspective, is he never truly grasped our Catholic faith.
From the moment this story broke, it was riddled with deception. When I say this, I am not speaking about deception within the leaders of the Catholic Church, but self deception on the part of the man who took his own life into his own hands, and finished his way.
Let it be known, that I do not know what has become of this mans soul. I pray for him.
What I do know, is through looking at his posts, that he was not a follower of our Lord, nor obedient to His teachings. Most of what I have read, through his own writings and the aftermath of his decision to take his own life, has left a mess riddled with deception and has caused many faithful asking the question, who did this? Many place the blame on the Priests, the diocese, and even the man. Who is to blame? Deception is to blame.
The entire story reeks of diabolic (division). Thus, deception and the very name of the devil.
Romans 16:17-20 is needed here. We are so quick to blame one another when deception has entered the picture. We need not to blame one another, but rather need to reinforce that wall where the evil one tried to gain access, by remaining in the Truth, crushing deception’s head and the illusions it has produced.
Our Lord speaks of the evil one in this way: “He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he speaks in character, because he is a liar and the father of lies.”
Self deception speaks in character also. Because the one who has deceived themselves, does not yet know the Truth. The Truth is our Lord. The “fruit” produced under self deception, is deception, false hope and disobedience. Do not be drawn into it.
The night before our Lord’s passion, “While they were eating, he said, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me.”. The evil one was in the same room. He had entered into Judas, while he was conspiring against Him. I ponder now, how often we conspire against our Lord as we try to justify our own self deception. The times we tell ourselves, Jesus will forgive me if I do this because I feel its right for me, without taking counsel from those who do know, without a doubt, what we want to do is truly unjust. We only deceive ourselves as our Lord knows better and desires the better for us, always. He will never force the better upon us as He created us with free will, to accept Him, or deny Him and the better.
From tonight’s Liturgy of the Hours, Evening Prayer:
Clothe your faithful people in the armor of salvation, – and shield them from the deceptions of the devil. Lord, show us your mercy.
In simply reading the title of the article, I laughed. Win you back? You have already been won by our Lord. Its up to you to return to your first Love.
Love does not demand to be won back. He is there for the taking. If you desire Him, you can have Him and He will not demand you do. The title of this article reads like a typical “Hollywood” movie. It reeks with pride. Win you back? You are free to leave and you are free to return. Our faith is not some romance novel where you are being chased by that guy who goes out of his way and goes your way, changing everything about Himself to make you love Him, while you are playing hard to get. Not even close. He created you. It is you who have walked away from Him.
Playing hard to get never works with our Lord because He allows you to stay away. Its called Free Will. Its up to you to desire Him. If one is not attracted to our Lord himself, in His fullness, what’s the point of coming at all? People are judgmental about everything we do. Humility allows us to overlook rash judgement, and stay in Love with Him, no matter what anyone else says. Its called fortitude. Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions. It disposes one even to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just cause. “The Lord is my strength and my song.” “In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
These very souls who do persecute us, in even the smallest ways, help us to see the reality of our OWN overblown egos. But this is not something that can be overcome with self pride. If I hold the attitude that I am the best thing our Lord could ever imagine, I have puffed up my own ego and placed myself on His throne, and Him below myself.
What is it that causes souls to return to the Church? Is it the events? Is it the groups? Is it the bands? If it is, those same souls quickly become bored and look for some other group, event and band elsewhere. Because its not the FULLNESS of our Lord.
Our Lord called me to Himself. What does that mean? It means I had to make a LOT of very important decisions. Do I stay in a really bad abusive relationship with the world, where I lived the life of illusion or “Follow Him”. In making the free choice to “follow Him”, I chose obedience to Him. I came home for Him. Many things stand in our way when we do this. But those things are always interior struggles that seek to ruin this new relationship with our Lord, the same way a jealous old interest tries to draw you back into that toxic relationship you once had, filling you up with false promises and things you always wanted, because you were “comfortable” in it.
God’s house is very inclusive, but the issues come when we demand God to change to suit our needs and not the other way around. We are called to accept Him as He Is. Not how we perceive Him to be.
A question we all need to ask ourselves is this. What do I desire? When we desire just Him, everything in Him comes with Him.
Lets go back now to the woman who just desired to touch the hem of our Lord’s cloak. Did she stay away and demand our Lord come to her? Did she place limits on Him? If He only comes to me and touches the hem of MY dress, I will follow him… No. It was her decision. And what a decision that was she made.
Never allow our Lord to be the one that got away as He is the only Way, the Truth and the Life. No games. He is True Love.
I need to share this. We always struggle with our faith. We hear Him calling us, and yet, we put off “going home” because we think we know better. We listen to the “world”, and think it is better. It is not. We are not. Our Lord knows EVERYTHING and knows what you need before you even ask Him.
I could not understand why those around me, didn’t want to believe my conversion story. This: Just one-third of U.S. Catholics agree with their church that Eucharist is body, blood of Christ – Tells me why. If souls do not believe Him, why would they believe me? I refuse to stop there. I know without a doubt it is Him and nothing in this world, will ever get me to not listen to Him and not believe Him again. Hearing Him has left a mark on me that I can never deny Him again.
This is a huge part of my conversion back home to the Catholic Church. I had been struggling for MANY years with this sin. I hope it brings other to face their fear of their own sins, and overcome them, returning to our Lord who waits for you with open arms.
Easter 2008 – My husband was home from Yuma (USMC separated us for a time), and I went into the yard to water. There is a protestant church behind our home and as I watered the trees and grass, I watched all these cars pulling in for “Easter” services. I stood and chucked a bit, as a Catholic, and said to myself: What did they even do in there? Its not real worship! – THAT VERY SECOND – In my heart, I heard our LORD ask me: Where are you? What are YOU doing? – That voice ROCKED my world. Destroyed it! Where was I? What was I doing? I certainly wasn’t at Mass! I certainly wasn’t where I was supposed to be! It bothered me for a WEEK. I could NOT stop thinking about it. By the time the following Sunday came, I found myself NEEDING to get to Mass. It was Divine Mercy Sunday, and I NEVER stopped attending Holy Mass again. The following December, I heard that voice in my heart again! The post below is what He said. The YEARS since, is what He has done to me ❤ I share this to give Him the praise, glory, honor and all the power. Thank you LORD. I love You too.
For the many souls outraged over the “decor” of the new Christ Cathedral.
Ponder if you will
Imagine a new married couple. They purchase their first house. Is that house automatically furnished and full of memories? No. Over time and years, that house is transformed into their home.There are good times and bad, building expansion, downsizing, and rest.
What makes it a home? The souls who reside in it. Its not the decorations that should grab our attention, but the fact that our Lord now resides here and is inviting all of us to reside with Him also
The prophet Elijah appears in Scripture as a man of God who lived always in His presence and fought zealously for the worship of the one God. He defended God’s law in a solemn contact on Mt. Carmel, and afterwards was given on Mt. Horeb an intimate experience of the living God. The hermits who instituted a form of monastic life in honor of Our Lady on Mt. Carmel in the twelfth century, followed monastic tradition in turning to Elijah as their Father and model.
Evening Prayer I
Hymn
Let the sun, rising, hear your prise, Elijah,
Earth, sky, and water, hear our jubilation
To the sun’s setting, glory of your people,
Strength of our Order.
O light of heaven’s radiant beauty glowing,
Mighty in wonder, blessed in your merits,
Many times witness of his greatest marvels By…
O beautiful Flower of Carmel, most fruitful vine,
Splendor of Heaven, holy and singular,
who brought forth the Son of God,
still ever remaining a Pure Virgin,
assist me in this necessity.
O Star of the sea, help and protect me!
Show me that Thou art my Mother.
O Mary, conceived without sin,
pray for us who have recourse to Thee!
Mother and Beauty of Carmel, Pray for us!
Virgin, Flower of Carmel, Pray for us!
Patroness of all who wear the Scapular, Pray for us!
Hope of all who die wearing the Scapular, Pray for us!
St. Joseph, Friend of the Sacred Heart, Pray for us!
St. Joseph, Chaste Spouse of Mary, Pray for us!
St. Joseph, Our Patron, Pray for us!
O sweet Heart of Mary, Be our salvation!
Amen.
O Precious Blood of Jesus, infinite price of sinful man’s redemption, both drink and laver of our souls, Thou who dost plead continually the cause of man before the throne of infinite mercy; from the depths of my heart, I adore Thee, and so far as I am able, I would requite Thee for the insults and outrages which Thou dost continually receive from human beings, and especially from those who rashly dare to blaspheme Thee. Who would not bless this Blood of infinite value? Who doth not feel within himself the fire of the love of Jesus who shed it all for us? What would be my fate, had I not been redeemed by this Divine Blood? Who hath drawn it from the veins of my Savior, even to the last drop? Ah, this surely was the work of love. O infinite love, which has given us this saving balm! O balm beyond all price, welling up from the fountain of infinite love, grant that every heart and every tongue may be enabled to praise Thee, magnify Thee and give Thee thanks both now and for evermore.
Amen.
“In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world.” John 16:33
This beautiful day, this day of the Sacred Heart of our Lord, Jesus Christ, I pray for all who are suffering with the bad news that fills this world with so much anxiety and depression. I pray for souls to grab hold of our Lord with both hands, allowing Him to touch their hearts. Allowing Him to heal the broken pieces we all have, and to bring us His peace.
Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust in You. I do not trust in the false hope of political leaders or worldly possessions. I do not trust in the news of the day. I do not trust in myself. My Lord and my God, I trust in You. You O Lord who have said: “I am the Way; I am Truth and Life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” I believe, I trust, I love You. Lead the way, fill me with You.
When our Lord said He would send us an Advocate, one must first ask, what is an Advocate?
ad·vo·cate
noun
/ˈadvəkət/
a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy.
If I was a criminal, which we all truly are in the spiritual sense, as we are all guilty sinners, I am granted the right to an Attorney. When our Lord told us He would send an Advocate, this is in fact the Holy Spirit. What does this mean to us? He is here to guide, and help us in the many internal and external struggles we face, to stay on the right path and not to be lead astray by what we are lacking. If I were to represent myself in a court of law, without ANY knowledge or understanding of the Law, where would I be sent for many years by the Judge who knows all? If I chose to represent myself, am I not doing what our Lord told us not to do? Would I therefore be pleading “Innocent” when in fact I am guilty? Would I look to be insane by the Judge and then would I not actually BE insane by NOT taking the advise and direction of the Advocate our Lord has appointed to me?
The very moment we do something wrong, we know it to be wrong, because our “conscious” tells us it is wrong. In the deep chambers of this conscious, resides the Advocate. As we act on the wrong decision and sin, we are convicted. This is a moment of grace. A moment to be CONVERTED. A moment in which our stone hearts, can be changed to flesh. When we continue on that wrong path, we are walking away from the Advocate there to help, and we begin to build a mountain of guilt. What is a soul to do with guilt? How does one get rid of it? We can try to repress or suppress it, but over years, it becomes something that consumes and rots us from the inside out. By the time it manifests externally, which mind you, does not take very long as others can see guilt a mile away, even when we choose not to and think we have wonderfully hidden it, it becomes a burden that eats away at our relations with others through depression, anxiety and anger. Left very long or not very long at all, depending on the sensitivity of the soul, it shows itself as mania, hysteria, psychosis, and many times takes us into suicide and or murder.
How then is a soul to rid ones self of its own guilt? By embracing the guilt. Embracing it and you take it to the dumpster and walk away from it. If I am appointed an Attorney for a trial, am I not to tell my Attorney everything that has taken place to ensure a “Light” sentence? Our Lord knows our guilt. No one gets away with murder. No one gets away with anything. Sin is sin and the wages of all sin is death. Guilt and holding on to the guilt of our sins, is that millstone around our necks. How is that millstone shattered? By taking the Counsel that has been appointed to us by our Lord. Do everything He tells you. Beginning with a great Confession. The act of confessing, is the beginning of cleaning up the guilt we have accumulated or if you would hoarding guilt, for years and years. You know that our Lord has told us that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. When our interiors are packed with sin and guilt, it makes it very difficult to find anything, let alone that room where the Advocate is located. Confessing our sins and turning away from them, is how we clean up that interior in order to find that hidden room under the exorbitant amount of guilt we buried Him under.
What to do while we are being convicted? Silence, contemplation and prayer. Have you ever been told to shut up and listen for your own good? This is the time to do just that. Speak when He directs you to. Say what He is advising you to say. Act, as He is directing you to act. He is here to help you. It is mercy He seeks for you. Even when the worst most horrific things about you are being revealed. The horror of it all, is no horror to Him who already knows. The horror of it all, is to YOU who thought you had hidden it and thought it would just all go away. Like a parent who catches their child with their hand in the cookie jar, you are so busted. And He still loves you. Like a rat in a trap, squirming to be released, in everything you have ever done. And He loves all His creatures. The Advocate will NOT release you. The question remains, “Do you love me?”.
The Advocate will advise you to plead GUILTY and not to continue in the guilt, but to keep clean, live a model life until your court case is heard. His advice is always to REPENT and believe in the Gospel. Not yourself. It is the Judge who will do the releasing and sentencing, and we hope it might just be for time served, if you begin to serve the sentence before you stand in front of the Judge.
Welcome the Advocate with open arms. Don’t do what you know is not good. Do not push Him away. Pray for Him to come to you, and help you to make it through it all.
Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.
Here is a wonderful video by Venerable Bishop Fulton John Sheen. For some reason, it will not play from the beginning. Please, watch it from the start, not half way through.
O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference’s by which He is offended.
Most Sacred, most loving Heart of Jesus,
You are concealed in the Holy Eucharist,
And You beat for us still.
Now, as then, You say: “With desire I have desired.”
I worship You with all my best love and awe,
With fervent affection,
With my most subdued, most resolved will.
For a while You take up Your abode within me.
O make my heart beat with Your Heart!
Purify it of all that is earthly,
All that is proud and sensual,
All that is hard and cruel,
Of all perversity,
Of all disorder,
Of all deadness.
So fill it with You,
That neither the events of the day,
Nor the circumstances of the time,
May have the power to ruffle it;
But that in Your love and Your fear,
It may have peace.
(Blessed John Cardinal Henry Newman)
Thanks for speaking up Bishop Tobin….let us be mighty loving messengers of truth and light in Jesus Christ https://t.co/KMWRYIYYYf
— Bishop J. Strickland (@BishStrickland) June 2, 2019
Turning and turning in the widening gyre The falcon cannot hear the falconer; Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere The ceremony of innocence is drowned; The best lack all conviction, while the worst Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand; Surely the Second Coming is at hand. The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert A shape with lion body and the head of a man, A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun, Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds. The darkness drops again; but now I know That twenty centuries of stony sleep Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle, And what rough beast, its hour come round at last, Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?
“Let me be blunt: you’ve been played for idiots. Idios, in the original Greek, means an independent agent, belonging to oneself. That is how I mean it. The designer of the Sexual Revolution believed you’d go so far to sacrifice your own families for sexual autonomy (most of you aren’t even married yet, but you’ve severed yourselves from what your ancestors handed down, a process of cutting begun by your grandfathers).”
How many times do we hear, “If only God would intervene __________________ (fill in the blank) wouldn’t have happened..
The problem is not God, but the refusal of God. What most don’t seem to see today, is that He has intervened. He sent His only begotten Son, who suffered, died and rose from the dead for us. The problem is not that God isn’t doing anything, but rather not everyone is listening to Him or following Him.
Can we not see how far this society has fallen into the selfishness and lack of empathy people have today for one another and all creation? Its only a symptom of a much larger problem. Who can I cheat to get ahead for my own selfish ambition is the platform for most of our politicians today. Classrooms are full of students assaulting teachers instead of learning. Elderly are beaten on the streets, and sometimes within their own homes, simply for being elderly. Foster care is full of children abandoned by parents. Churches, Synagogues & Mosques are attacked and people blame the faith instead of the lack of faith these attackers have.. Relationships and family’s have become something some change out no different than they change out their phones for a “better” one. You hear daily the call for more & more abortion on demand, because people refuse to take responsibility for their reckless behavior. And we can’t figure out why people can be so cruel to animals?
Repent and believe in the Gospel.
Today from Denver Catholic – via Archbishop Aquila:
Oh how that “charcoal fire” burned into my conscious the sins I had committed against You my Spouse, through the times before I knew You my Lord and my God. My sins ever before me, burning with painful chains which held me from You. Unable to see You in the Fire of Love, unable to see You suffering for me.
Today my Lord, today, you have come to me, in Love, that I may love and live again in You. My sins burned away, leaving only You remaining, for me to follow You.
Pondering: Religion is the cause of more problems today than anything!
When I hear that statement, I can’t help but think of Nero blaming the Christians for the burning of Rome. Granted, he ordered the burning and if one in his army had been baptized, but was only following his orders, he is a follower of Nero, and not our Lord.
“This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” . Lv 19:18 “Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your own people. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.”
If someone states, I am a christian, and rams his car through people on purpose to kill them, he is either seriously psychotic or demonic or, he is not a Christian, but rather follows his own design and not that of our Lord. To BE a Christian, is to be what our Lord called us to be. His follower. His disciple. His children. Remember: “He will baptize you with the holy Spirit and fire. ”
What the world assumes to be “christian” is nothing more then secularism looking directly back at them in the mirror. “Don’t JUDGE ME”! Well, “By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?” I do judge you by the actions you take and words you say. Its how a conscious is formed through right reason and logic, with grace.
The constant blame today toward Christians being bigots, when they refuse to go with the flow of the Religion of Secularism, in which Politicians and “Scholars” (in quotes because Wisdom never changes but knowledge does) assume to present “their” truth, that a human being in the womb has no rights, or that a man can be a woman, or a woman can be a man, or marriage does not mean one woman and one man for the growth and strength of a prosperous society, that we must be able to pass legislation to make it easier for people to kill themselves through assisted suicide, is the religion of secularism. Not Christianity. Its time to check the facts of the faith in which we place in our Lord.
“Your truth is not my truth.” No! Your truth is not Truth at all, but its truly misplaced faith placed in society and political leaders and not in Jesus Christ. Bigotry is intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from oneself. Truth is not an opinion. Its the Truth.
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
Fourth Day
“Today bring to Me those who do not believe in God and those who do not know Me,
I was thinking also of them during My bitter Passion, and their future zeal comforted My Heart. Immerse them in the ocean of My mercy.”
Most compassionate Jesus, You are the Light of the whole world. Receive into the abode of Your Most Compassionate Heart the souls of those who do not believe in God and of those who as yet do not know You. Let the rays of Your grace enlighten them that they, too, together with us, may extol Your wonderful mercy; and do not let them escape from the abode which is Your Most Compassionate Heart.
Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the souls of those who do not believe in You, and of those who as yet do not know You, but who are enclosed in the Most Compassionate Heart of Jesus. Draw them to the light of the Gospel. These souls do not know what great happiness it is to love You. Grant that they, too, may extol the generosity of Your mercy for endless ages. Amen.
*Our Lord’s original words here were “the pagans.” Since the pontificate of Pope John XXIII, the Church has seen fit to replace this term with clearer and more appropriate terminology.
If you are a Christian NOT being persecuted, you are doing Christianity wrong.
1 O sacred head, surrounded
by crown of piercing thorn!
O bleeding head, so wounded,
so shamed and put to scorn!
Death’s pallid hue comes o’er thee,
the glow of life decays;
yet angel-hosts adore thee,
and tremble as they gaze.
2 Thy comeliness and vigour
is withered up and gone,
and in thy wasted figure
I see death drawing on.
O agony and dying!
O love to sinners free!
Jesu, all grace supplying,
turn thou thy face on me.
3 In this thy bitter passion,
good Shepherd, think of me
with thy most sweet compassion,
unworthy though I be:
beneath thy cross abiding
for ever would I rest,
in thy dear love confiding,
and with thy presence blest
May the restoration come quickly and may we remember that just as the Cathedral has burned, so do we as we seek to be restored by our Lord, Jesus Christ.
What does it mean to examine something but to look deep and see if there is something wrong and if there is, a cure is available.
As I contemplate this Holy Thursday, the words of the disciples come to my heart. The beginning of the examination of conscious. After the fact of the sin, the harm we cause, can not be changed, but is forgiven. Driving us, not to commit that harm ever again on another.
Is it I, Lord? And another asked, is it I Lord? Is it I Lord? Humility asks if I have caused harm and seeks to rectify it. Pride does not. All but one, returned to our Lord, to ask pardon for having inflicted harm on Him. One, did not and took the Bread of Life into his own hands. Not turning back to Christ, but away from Him.
All of us have betrayed our Lord . All of us. All of us have. Its called sin. The difference is, we are still here and have a choice to turn back like the rest of the twelve did, through The Sacrament of Reconciliation, thus enabling us to receive our Lord again, in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
After this, and the leaving of Judas, we find our Lord already washing the feet of those who would turn back to Him. Proving again, He loved us first. The question that remains to be answered? Do you love Him?
What does it mean to examine something but to look deep and see if there is something wrong and if there is, a cure is available.
Peg Pondering Again 