Mary has requested that the daily message be given each day to the world. It is read nightly at the prayer service from her Image Building in Clearwater, Florida, U.S.A. This is according to her request. All attempts will be made to publish this daily message to the world at 11 p.m. Eastern time, U.S.A.We acknowledge that the final authority regarding these messages rests with the Holy See of Rome. |
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January 18, 2005
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January 19th Holy Spirit
Novena |
The Novena Rosary
Mysteries |
Retreat for Apostles
Starts Ash Wednesday
February 9, 2005 6:20pm
Continues 10th thru 13th
January 18, 2005
Isaiah 55: 6-9
Seek out Yahweh
while he is still to be found,
call to him while he is still near.
Let the wicked abandon his way
and the evil one his thoughts.
Let him turn back to Yahweh
who will take pity on him,
to our God, for he is rich in forgiveness;
for my thoughts are not your thoughts
and your ways are not my ways,
declares Yahweh.
For the heavens are as high above earth
as my ways are above your ways,
my thoughts above your thoughts.
Exodus 34: 1-11
Yahweh said to Moses, ‘Cut two tablets of stone like the first ones and come up to me on the mountain, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke. Be ready at dawn; at dawn come up Mount Sinai and wait for me there at the top of the mountain. No one may come up with you, no one may be seen anywhere on the mountain; the flocks and herds may not even graze in front of this mountain.’ So he cut two tablets of stone like the first and, with the two tablets of stone in his hands, Moses went up Mount Sinai in the early morning as Yahweh had ordered. And Yahweh descended in a cloud and stood with him there and pronounced the name Yahweh.
Then Yahweh passed before him and called out, ‘Yahweh, Yahweh, God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in faithful love and constancy, maintaining his faithful love to thousands, forgiving fault, crime and sin, yet letting nothing go unchecked, and punishing the parent’s fault in the children and in the grandchildren to the third and fourth generation!’Moses immediately bowed to the ground in worship, then he said, ‘If indeed I do enjoy your favour, please, my Lord, come with us, although they are an obstinate people; and forgive our faults and sins, and adopt us as your heritage.’
He then said, ‘Look, I am now making a covenant: I shall work such wonders at the head of your whole people as have never been worked in any other country or nation, and all the people round you will see what Yahweh can do, for what I shall do through you will be awe–inspiring. Mark, then, what I command you today. I am going to drive out the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites before you.
The Ten Commandments
I, the Lord, am your God. You shall not have other gods besides me.
You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.
Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.
Honor your father and your mother.
You shall not kill.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
You shall not covet anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Genesis 18: 26-32
Yahweh replied, ‘If I find fifty upright people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place because of them.’
Abraham spoke up and said, ‘It is presumptuous of me to speak to the Lord, I who am dust and ashes: Suppose the fifty upright were five short? Would you destroy the whole city because of five?’ ‘No,’ he replied, ‘I shall not destroy it if I find forty–five there.’ Abraham persisted and said, ‘Suppose there are forty to be found there?’ ‘I shall not do it,’ he replied, ‘for the sake of the forty.’
Abraham said, ‘I hope the Lord will not be angry if I go on: Suppose there are only thirty to be found there?’ ‘I shall not do it,’ he replied, ‘if I find thirty there.’ He said, ‘It is presumptuous of me to speak to the Lord: Suppose there are only twenty there?’ ‘I shall not destroy it,’ he replied, ‘for the sake of the twenty.’ He said, ‘I trust my Lord will not be angry if I speak once more: perhaps there will only be ten.’ ‘I shall not destroy it,’ he replied, ‘for the sake of the ten.’
Joel 2: 12-18
'But now -- declares Yahweh --
come back to me with all your heart,
fasting, weeping, mourning.'
Tear your hearts and not your clothes,
and come back to Yahweh your God,
for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger, rich in faithful love,
and he relents about inflicting disaster.
Who knows if he will not come back,
relent
and leave a blessing behind him,
a cereal offering and a libation
to be presented to Yahweh your God?Blow the ram's-horn in Zion!
Order a fast,
proclaim a solemn assembly,
call the people together,
summon the community,
assemble the elders,
gather the children,
even infants at the breast!
Call the bridegroom from his bedroom
and the bride from her bower!
Let the priests, the ministers of Yahweh,
stand weeping between portico and altar,
saying, 'Spare your people, Yahweh!
Do not expose your heritage
to the contempt,
to the sarcasm of the nations!
Why give the peoples cause to say,
"Where is their God?" 'Then, becoming jealous over his country,
Yahweh took pity on his people.
Jonah 3: 1-10
The word of Yahweh was addressed to Jonah a second time. 'Up!' he said, 'Go to Nineveh, the great city, and preach to it as I shall tell you.' Jonah set out and went to Nineveh in obedience to the word of Yahweh. Now Nineveh was a city great beyond compare; to cross it took three days. Jonah began by going a day's journey into the city and then proclaimed, 'Only forty days more and Nineveh will be overthrown.' And the people of Nineveh believed in God; they proclaimed a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his robe, put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes. He then had it proclaimed throughout Nineveh, by decree of the king and his nobles, as follows: ‘No person or animal, herd or flock, may eat anything; they may not graze, they may not drink any water. All must put on sackcloth and call on God with all their might; and let everyone renounce his evil ways and violent behaviour. Who knows? Perhaps God will change his mind and relent and renounce his burning wrath, so that we shall not perish.’ God saw their efforts to renounce their evil ways. And God relented about the disaster which he had threatened to bring on them, and did not bring it.
1 John 1: 5 - 2: 2
This is what we have heard from him and are declaring to you:
God is light,
and there is no darkness in him at all.
If we say that we share in God’s life
while we are living in darkness,
we are lying,
because we are not living the truth.
But if we live in light,
as he is in light,
we have a share in another’s life,
and the blood of Jesus, his Son,
cleanses us from all sin.If we say, ‘We have no sin,’
we are deceiving ourselves,
and truth has no place in us;
if we acknowledge our sins,
he is trustworthy and upright,
so that he will forgive our sins
and will cleanse us from all evil.
If we say, ‘We have never sinned,’
we make him a liar,
and his word has no place in us.
My children, I am writing this
to prevent you from sinning;
but if anyone does sin,
we have an advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ, the upright.
He is the sacrifice to expiate our sins,
and not only ours,
but also those of the whole world.
Sing: Loving and Forgiving
BUILD THE BRIDGE
From The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius,
by Louis J. Puhl, S.J.p. 28
"What have I done for Christ?"
"What am I doing for Christ?"
"What ought I to do for Christ?"
p. 12
23. FIRST PRINCIPLE AND FOUNDATION
Man is created to praise, reverence and serve God
our Lord, and by this means to save his soul.
21. SPIRITUAL EXERCISES
Which have as their purpose the conquest of self
and the regulation of one's life in such a way that
no decision is made under the influence of any
inordinate attachmentp. 25
46. PRAYER. In the preparatory prayer I will beg God
our Lord for grace that all my intentions, actions,
and operations may be directed purely to the
praise and service of His Divine Majesty.
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks:
I call you to come to Me and to
realize this is My Movement --
help do what I have asked you to do.
Get all the rosary disc out
make them available --
they can be used in the car,
jogging etc.
Pray the rosary with Fr. Mike
it will give you peace.
Make tapes available.
discs (audio)
tapes (audio)
video
DVD's
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: I
have given you My Movement to
spread My Ministries.
Some servants and handmaids
and apostles are not answering
their call.
- Pray for your candidates
- Pray for your people
all the categories
- Pray for vocations to all categories
Apostles make arrangements now to
come to China for the Apostle
retreat Ash Wednesday Eve to
the 13th.
The main days of the retreat are
February 10, 11, 12, 13.
February 11 is the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.
The retreat in China January was
most powerful -- ask the servants
and handmaids --
I promise abundant grace to
all apostles who come in
February for them and their
family.
I ask you to pray and support the
Newsletter on the Eucharist
and Mary -- your help can
change the world.
Pray hourly for this endeavor --
pray for all aspects of getting
the Newsletter out immediately --
You will be blessed in a special
way for all your work.
Help with this most important
Ministry of the Shepherds of Christ.
Help to spread the Prayer Chapters
all over the world.
Help by telling all about
the Apostles of the
Eucharistic Heart and
the rosary program.
Please answer your call to help with
My Movement.
Pray the prayers I have given --
You will receive such benefits --
Excerpt from November 4, 2001
Jesus speaks: To those who
pray My prayers I
promise
the following special
graces:
- A deeper understanding of the
Divine Mysteries through fervent
recitation of the litanies.- I promise a deeper love in your heart
for your God and a deeper love
for your fellowmen.- Those who pray the prayers fervently
will experience a deep union
in My Heart and My Mother's heart,
they will be given special insights
into My unfathomable love for men
and experience a thirsting within
themselves to want to help souls
through intercessory prayer and sacrifices.
- They will have a deeper love of the Mass
through this deeper consecration.
[consecration to Their Hearts]
- They will know Me more intimately.
- They will want to live their lives to
help save souls.
- They will have a deeper love for the priests shepherds.
- They will have a deeper love and dedication
to the Church. (I founded)
- They will want peace on the earth.
- They will want peace in their own hearts.
- You will experience a fearlessness the more
you pray the Holy Spirit Novena prayers
given to you.
- As you meditate on the scriptures you will
understand more fully the plan of
the Father to lead the souls into the
great Reign of My Sacred Heart.
- You and all who pray the Holy Spirit Novena
and the Shepherds of Christ Prayers will be
united in a deep oneness with each other
and the souls of the earth.
- The more you pray these prayers (both sets)
you will live in the truth as you
dwell in Our Hearts.
- You will be given gifts of the Holy Spirit.
- You and your family will be protected by
My Precious Blood and your families
will receive special protection
against satan from fervent recitation
of the prayers. (the Holy Spirit Novena
and the Shepherds of Christ Prayers)
- I promise to take you and the members of
your family in a special way
into My Sacred Heart. I will lavish
you in the fires of My love.
- The priests and the people of the Church and the world
will receive special graces from the fervent
recitation of these prayers. (both sets)
- I will unite My people in a deeper love
from the graces granted from
fervent recitation of these prayers.
- I give these prayers from My image site
in Florida.
I appear there daily as the Sacred Heart.
Some see Me, some do not, but there
is a special presence there.
My Mother appears there for her children.
- In the five years of her apparitions many
souls who have come have been
given special graces of conversion.
Many have been given grace to lead
them into a deeper love union with
God and the Blessed Virgin.
- The image site in Florida has touched
the world.
- I outpour great grace to those who come
to the site.
- There are tremendous graces of healing
granted to all who come.
- People who come rarely leave unchanged.
- The grace granted works in their lives and in
their hearts, long after they have gone.
- A reminder of their visit only need be given
and they experience a memory of
that moment.
end of excerpt from November 4, 2001
Message given 11 years ago
January 19, 1994 4:45 a.m.
Jesus: I write a message for the world. I write this message for you. I want to tell them to pray and not to underestimate what sufferings will befall them all. Pray constantly. You suffer this weather, you see the earthquakes and you still do not comprehend a power greater than yourself. I have all the power. I want men's minds and hearts to turn back to God. I want God first in their lives, but they are so blind. What do they need to shake them to such great power!
All things are under My control. There is not one thing that happens that I do not allow. You are so comfortable in such evilness. Why are you not on your knees asking, "Lord what is happening?" One suffering will come after another and you will, in your blindness, have to admit to My Might. My mother comes and people pay no heed. Spread these messages. Spread her messages. Do not think of what others think of you. They will know soon enough of their blindness. Do not spend a day without telling someone news about the Blessed Mother and why she comes. Tell all of My might and tell them to pray. Prayer is your weapon in a sick world. Open up the minds of your friends. What will rock these children off their rockers? If the earth moves under them, they still stay steadfast in their ways. So stubborn, indeed. They want to be blind because they do not want to change to the ways of God!
I am He Who comes to you this way. I am He Who wants you to pray constantly. I am He Who is calling out an alert for a change in your lives. I am He Who wants you to pray, yet you sit. You idle and hold on to such trivial things while the earth moves under your feet! I will rock the heavens. I will tell you of My might. Sit, you idle ones, but you will suffer for not praying. I am God. I am Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, and I am ever present in your midst. You are blind and look for idle pursuits.
You have become so comfortable in this evilness that you do not even sit up and take notice. "Oh, it is okay. I don't like it, but it is okay." Your children are being poisoned by the world, as if someone gives them constant poison, and you worry about your sports and what have you!
Where in the world do you think you are going? Man thinks he is here to stay. He spends his days making his life "better" he thinks: more things--more things, more money, better bodies, clean breath, better smelling feet--oh, such insane pursuits! Let's make these bodies so perfect! Our lives should reflect the perfect life! Our children run races for glory every day, not even knowing the Ten Commandments! You make every moment a pleasure in itself. Make yourselves happy. Eat, drink, be merry, be beautiful, be smart, be perfect. Forget God--who is He? We have a life going on here and we are going to enjoy every moment! This society is sick, sick, sick. What they are enjoying is destroying their souls. Children are not even aware that I exist and their lives are totally secular. They are so blind. Oh, America, I lament everything you do. It is senseless and without meaning!
The Son of Man is in your midst and you do not even know who He is. What more can I say. Spread My good news that Jesus is Lord and He is Coming, that you had better turn your lives back to Him now. Mary, My mother, is coming. The sun spins. What do they need? Such attachments to their sick ways! Pray constantly. Tell others about Me. Tell them to read the Bible and amend their ways. Tell them that I am God and that they need to turn their lives back to Me. Tell them to repent and pray. My mercy is great and I am waiting with open arms.
Pray, America, pray. You will soon know My might if you continue your foolish ways. Every soul who is fixed in Me is My messenger. Go to the highways and byways and tell all: Jesus is Lord and He wants you to amend your lives. He will rock the earth and you will know His might. Time is short. Repent and pray constantly. What do I do to shake you? This earth is very insecure, here today, gone tomorrow. The only things that remain are the things of God.
I am Jesus, Son of the Living God. Hear Me, America. Listen and be attentive! I do not come to give a message for one or two. This is My message for all. You will know My might in big proportions. I will rock you off your rockers. You must turn your lives to God. You are not here for fun and sin and whatever you are doing. Oh, little ones, you miss My tremendous love for you. You have missed all the good I have for you. You are stubborn and willful. You are silly and sick. Pray for your brothers. Pray, pray, pray, pray, pray, pray. Offer everything you do as a prayer and know I never ever leave you! I love you, My child. This message is an act of love!
I gave Myself that you might live. I am He Who comes to deliver this message to you and you are blind. Look beyond the cup and the drink. This is your miracle, that I am truly present in the Eucharist.
I am here. Open your eyes and see Me here in your midst. Come to Me all who labor and are heavily burdened and I will give you rest. I am your God and I comfort you on your way. I am waiting for you to come and be in union with Me.
You, My faithful ones, can no longer be silent. Don't worry. Speak out. Others need you!
end of January 19, 1994
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: Your
prayers have helped hold
back My hand from
allowing just punishments
for the sin in the world.
My Mother was sent as a messenger
to Clearwater, Florida. She appeared
for 7½ years.
Mary by day |
by night |
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: I appear now -- here is My face
April 5, 2004
January 5, 2005
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: I have given My nursing
home disc and
materials to you.
Videos and discs of Mary as she
appeared should be circulated
to all.
Circulate the wallet pictures.
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: Come
to My site in Florida
tremendous graces are granted
for spiritual and physical
healing.
Messenger:
Video and disc made at the direction of Jesus
on the Epiphany January 2, 2005.
| Order these videos and discs #1 video __
disc __
Shepherds of Christ |
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: The
days go on and on and every day you are
closer to your death.
I long for you to tell My little ones
and all about the rosary.
Your Mother and I have given these books.
shipped from the printers |
Mary appeared |
Coloring books match the Rosary Ave Videos
led by Fr. Mike
Parents & Children's Rosary Book
Little People Elderly Book
Mysteries of Light
video |
disc |
coloring book |
coloring book |
Book 1 |
Book 2 |
Straight Rosary led by Fr. Mike
video |
DVD |
Cassette Tape |
CD |
Rosary Cassettes and discs
led and discerned by Fr. Carter
October 13, 96 |
November 13, 96 |
December 13, 96 |
January 13, 97 |
February 13, 97 |
Fr. Carter doing Newsletters
audio cassettes
1998 Issue 2 |
1998 Issue 4 |
1998 Issue 5 |
1999 Issue 1 |
1999 Issue 2 |
1999 Issue 3 |
1999 Issue 4 |
1999 Issue 5 |
2000 Issue 1 |
2000 Issue 2 |
Song Tapes and disc
Songs from Jesus |
October 1, 1995 |
October 24, 1995 |
Choose Life |
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: There
are many more available in
English and Spanish --
See the brochure at the end of
the message --
Mary appeared on the window --
look through the glass --
help Me spread My Messages,
Books, tapes and videos --
You have videos and tapes of
Mary appearing.
Photos of Mary appearing
on the building can be
obtained such as
these.
February 5, 2001
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: Your
world is in trauma.
I have sent My prayers
now in 6 languages with the
Imprimatur.
When you pray these prayers I will give you tremendous
grace.
English |
Spanish |
January 18, 2005 continues
Jesus speaks: Order
these and begin a prayer
chapter that can help
change your life.
6:20 Prayers
Available on disc and tape - Fr. Lou
Available on
video
- Fr. Mike
Available tape and disc
- Fr. Carter, Rita & John
Messenger:
(the 6:20 prayer tape by Fr. Carter has been used by
many with terminal cancer, it
helped them through the last
days)
We have a video and DVD with the Exposed
Eucharist and the Songs from Jesus --
this can be used with the Songs from
Jesus playing or viewed silently.
This is a great aid at home.
We have Fr. Mike doing a tremendous
video and DVD of the Mass for the
Nursing home, but it is only about
33 minutes and can be used by all.
Also we have Fr. Carter saying one of
his later Masses on a disc and audio
tape. He said the prayers so
beautifully -- Jesus asked him
to make it.
See the slide-show and
visit our centers
meet our people --
help us spread the message
Jesus gave to Fr. Carter and why
Mary appeared 7½ years
on the building and why
Jesus' face appears today.
This Movement is far reaching --
The main purpose is the Priestly
Newsletter that goes to 72,000
priests -- we need your prayers
and support.
A coequal purpose of the Movement
is the Prayer Chapters.
January 18, 2005 continues
Messenger:
The Shepherds of Christ have
7 levels of commitment.
Servants and handmaids of the Good Shepherd
Kathleen
Kathleen W.
I give my heart to Jesus and Mary with you in love! I write this for the honor and glory of God and in thanksgiving to Jesus for calling me to this Movement.Jesus says in St. John's Gospel, "You did not choose me, no, I chose you…" Jn 15:16.
What a calling! To be chosen to be a Handmaid of the Good Shepherd! His special spouse! The spouse of THE KING & CREATOR of the Universe!
WOW! And a Movement personally directed by Jesus! Thank you, Jesus!
Words cannot express all I would like to say. Since 1st grade I wanted to be a nun. I saw the nuns at my school and I wanted to be like them. Unfortunately growing up... all the peer pressure in school and the struggles of young adulthood took away any hope of being a nun. I followed the ways of the world and left Jesus out of my life.
During my senior year of nursing, the seed of pursuing a religious vocation sprang up again in my heart. I started attending daily Mass as often as I could, and Mary our Mother was bringing me closer to Jesus. My 1st choice was Mother Teresa's Order, however, that didn't happen for me.
After graduation from nursing school I went to a Bible Institute Retreat at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. While there, I attended a Baptism of the Spirit Seminar and felt a strong presence of the Holy Spirit.
That fall, in 1996, I went back to Ohio for another retreat, and while I was in the chapel one evening, I picked up God's Blue Book II and read a message on Communion from Jesus. I almost fell out of my pew! The message touched me deep in my heart. Thankfully, I was able to take the book home. the messages were awesome! I never knew of having such an intimate relationship with Jesus!
I started spending an hour everyday after Mass. I joined the Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart and later started a Shepherds of Christ Prayer Chapter. I got the other Blue Books, the rosary book and rosary tapes. I felt so committed to praying the prayers and the rosary mediations were so powerful! I thank Jesus and Mary for all these revelations!
I heard about the handmaids in 1998, while ordering through the Shepherds of Christ. I was really interested in them. I thought maybe this is where God is calling me. I kept praying to do His will.
Jesus, in His time, made it all work out. When we give our lives to Jesus, He can do more than we could ever ask for or imagine! Jesus loves us!
I feel so blessed and privileged to be in the formation of being a handmaid! Thank you, my Father, for this Movement and all the beautiful people in it! Thank you, Holy Spirit, for your tremendous work in my soul! Thank you, Jesus, for choosing me for this special calling. And like Mary, my life is a continuous FIAT. "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." and "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word."
Margaret C.
How Shepherds of Christ Has Changed My LifeIn midsummer of 1996, after receiving some material from a friend, I asked people to help form a Shepherds of Christ prayer chapter. I requested and obtained our Pastor's permission to expose the Blessed Sacrament nightly for our prayer gatherings. I also began making monthly pilgrimages to China, Indiana, for the special prayer service on the 13th of each month and a bit later, for the three-day retreats with exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.
The teachings, prayers, love letters, and way of life given to us by Jesus through His Shepherds of Christ Movement helped me realize that I held erroneous views about my faith and God's ways. I recognized too, that I had developed several unChrist-like habits. As ridiculous as it sounds now, the discovery that I could not make myself holy by hard work and perseverance, was quite an insight. But these disconcerting conclusions were accompanied by the refreshing realization that I was made to be totally dependent upon my Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier, and Heavenly Mother for all things -- including my sanctification. I came to understand that I needed an increased dependency:
On God the Father for His mercy, grace and the manifestation of His will for me,
On Jesus for His example, word, Sacrifice of the Mass, Sacraments, and Shepherds of Christ teachings,
On the Holy Spirit for His gifts and transforming action,
On Mary, my Mother for her protection, modeling and intercession.
The fact that all these gifts are free for my taking, will never cease to amaze me.
The pace with which self dies and gives way to Christ would be discouraging if it were not for the infinite, unconditional love and patience Jesus has for each soul, the explicit guidance He provides us on how to become more like Himself, and His generous promises. Jesus' love, expressed most vividly for me in His Incarnation, Passion, death, Eucharist, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation, provides the impetus I need to forever plead and beg for God's transforming action in me.
The stations and the rosary prayed as Jesus and Mary request, have made Their lives so real and made me increasingly aware that Their lives were always shaped by love for God the Father, for each Other, and for souls. I often now place myself at the scene of the mystery or station, and find myself asking questions, seeking counsel, expressing gratitude, or making a request or Act of Contrition. I have come to recognize that the slightest lack of love between my brother and myself is offensive to God and my Mother and that it distances me from Them. I have come to equate the lives of Jesus and Mary with a never-ending "fiat" -- some prayed tearfully, some joyfully, but all said unconditionally. This unending and uninterrupted fiat has become a source of great inspiration. While I believe it is rarely if ever attained in this life, I know that Jesus has set this as a goal for the members of His Movement. Stations, rosary and the messages from Jesus and Mary have also convinced me that working as a co-redeemer with Jesus and Mary is not only an essential component of Christianity but a privilege that allows us to truly share Divinity.
One of my favorite lessons is the channeling of grace and mercy from the Father, and the reverse channeling of our prayers to Him. A second favorite is the instructions Jesus has given us for more effectively offering the Sacrifice of the Mass. These two lessons have substantially affected my prayer life. I still frequently find myself trying to devise my own strategies, my own goals, my own time table; but when I catch myself doing so, I at least now recognize the absurdity of such self-direction and the wisdom of using the fool-proof methods identified by Jesus and Mary in the Shepherds of Christ Movement.
So with the grace of God I intend to daily nestle in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary through frequent consecration, learn to listen with my heart to Their counsel, beg for Their help to discern the Father's will, and join Them in praying "fiat".
Oh Jesus and Mary, I'll need eternity to begin to thank You for the lessons You are teaching me and the call and mission You have given me as a member of Shepherds of Christ. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! I give to each of You, my body, my heart, mind and soul. I place my trust in You.
Doris J.
What has Shepherds of Christ and being a Handmaid done for my life and for my relationship with Jesus?I first heard of Shepherds of Christ from a letter received concerning a rosary gathering at Tom’s Farm in October 1996. My family already had plans for the 13th. When I received a notice for November 13th my brother and I went not knowing much about Shepherds of Christ, but if it was praying the rosary-it had to be good. It was the most powerful rosary I ever attended. I didn’t go for several months, but felt drawn to this ministry and compelled to pray the prayers and read the blue books. Jesus was talking directly to me through them and it was great.
Jesus has always worked slowly in my heart. Pain and suffering in my early adult life brought me to realize that God was the only one I could turn to in my need. God alone was my strength.
In July 1997, news came that the department where I worked was being phased out by the parent company on the east coast. I was disenchanted with my job and I only continued working there to live, so I wasn’t concerned about the lack of a job.
During this same time, I felt pulled in my heart to pray with Shepherds of Christ as a body. I was shy and I would just come, sit, pray and be silent, not really talking to anyone very much.
I knew from my childhood that I would never marry. The pull Jesus had on me was stronger than the world’s, though I didn’t realize the source. For the past year I had become closer to Jesus and I felt what I would do with my life, next, would be for him alone.
On August 13, 1998, I went to China, Indiana, to the monthly rosary knowing something was going to happen-but not knowing what. During the rosary the president of Shepherds of Christ started reading a letter from Jesus about women being called as handmaids and their way of life. I felt the power of the Holy Spirit descend on my head and I was glad to be sitting. I knew Jesus was calling me to become a handmaid, a call that I had been waiting patiently for, for over two years.
After the rosary I acted on the Holy Spirit’s prompting immediately-knowing if I didn’t, I would find excuses not to. Jesus’ hand is very strong in my life. I was accepted as a candidate for a handmaid within a few days and gave two weeks notice at work. I found myself in Clearwater, Florida, within three weeks.
As a Handmaid of the Good Shepherd my life is very prayerful and very one on one with Jesus as His spouse. He is the Bridegroom of my Soul. Just being with him after Mass and in front of the tabernacle is candy to my soul and leaves me speechless. Being a handmaid has brought the joy, love and peace of my Divine Bridegroom into my life to an extent I didn’t even know could exist.
He calls me to constant change and growth. I cannot remain the same, for my life and love for him would stagnate. I live to serve him. I have only scratched the surface of the depth to which my soul craves union with my Lord and Savior. Any life in God is hard work, but the rewards are unbounded.
Jesus loves each and everyone of us on a personal level. He died on the cross to save each soul. He, the living God, is truly waiting in the tabernacle for us, to love us, if we would only come and sit with him.
Since my move to Clearwater, Florida, in 1998, I have recently traveled to China, Indiana, for a stay and I am currently in Morrow, Ohio, doing the work Jesus has called me to do. Jesus knows where I will be next, even though I do not.
There is nothing boring about being on Jesus’ roller coaster. The ride is into eternity! I can’t wait to see you there!
Apostles
Melanie Mary N.
What has the Shepherds of Christ done for my life? What has the Shepherds of Christ done for my life?
How do you put into words God's Grace? How do you express His Almighty Love and Goodness? How do you write about things that are not tangible?
Through the Shepherds of Christ Ministries I have learned to KNOW, LOVE and SERVE Him, my God.
I remember as a child in grade school learning the catechism. The dear sisters would say, "You must know, love and serve God to be happy with Him in Heaven." I loved learning about Him!
The Blue Books and writing to Jesus daily is such a gift. I have learned personally about my Jesus, my spiritual Spouse. To really know Him is certainly to love Him and all mankind. Because I know and love Him so, I want to serve Him every minute of the day. In doing so, I pray, offer up daily duty, love and serve others, strive to be a good wife and mother and an apostle.
I want to identify with His Passion, and He allows me to experience His sufferings and His Mother's sufferings. To identify is to know.
I want to help in the salvation of souls. Not just one, but millions. I desire souls to love Him as I do and more, because He deserves to be loved so.
I have continued my catechism classes, when I thought 12th grade was the end. There is a knowledge that I know that I am not worthy of or deserving of. He has touched me and I have responded to His call. I pray I will only do His Will.
Thank You God, for choosing this little, tiny soul for Your very special service in the Shepherds of Christ Ministries.
Lord, I am not worthy, but only say the word and my soul will want to say, "Yes".
He has graced me throughout my life, but now more than ever. As a Married Couple and Leader Apostles, He has taken our life and expanded it so greatly that I cannot express all of this in words. It is certainly a privilege to be working side by side with the Almighty.
He has blessed us a hundred fold, my family and myself. We are more loving and forgiving of one another's imperfections. God has given us one another to serve Him together. I can never give back to Him what He has given to us, but we can try to give as much as we can.
Thank You Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, for allowing me to be with You in the Shepherds of Christ Ministries.
I love You, Mary, and the Shepherds of Christ Movement very much.
Daniel N.
What has the Shepherds of Christ done for my life?In Luke 24:13-35 we are given the beautiful account of the two disciples on their way to Emmaus. It was evident that they "knew" of Jesus, but they were unable to recognize Him when He joined them on their journey. As they walked, Jesus interpreted all the scriptures concerning Himself. Upon arriving near the village they begged Him to stay. Jesus complied with their request. At table, Jesus blessed and broke the bread and gave it to them. Their eyes were opened and they "recognized" Him. Jesus immediately vanished from their site and they hurriedly returned to Jerusalem to tell the Apostles what had happened.
I see myself as one of those disciples on my journey to the Kingdom. I "know" Jesus, but do not always recognize Him. Through my involvement in the Shepherds of Christ Ministries, Jesus joins me on my journey. As we walk, Jesus teaches me about Himself through the Priestly Newsletter, the Blue Books, the Daily Messages and all of the various publications of the ministry. When I receive Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, I recognize His presence in me and I in Him. Thank You, Jesus, for opening my eyes and allowing me to come closer to You.
I realize my relationship with Jesus is not a one way street. I must respond to His love for me and be willing to serve Him. My connection with the Shepherds of Christ allows me to serve in a most special way. Eucharistic Adoration, praying the Prayer Manual prayers and the Holy Spirit Novena, spreading devotion to His Sacred Heart and complying with Mary's request at Fatima, enable me to demonstrate my love for the Most Blessed Trinity. In a marvelous way, the more willing I am to serve Jesus, the closer I come to Him through increased knowledge and love.
I want to thank all of the Shepherds of Christ Associates whom I have come to know since joining the ministry in 1996. The love and concern for one another is truly Christ-like. Finally, I want to thank my wife Melanie for leading me into the Movement. Our love for Jesus and each other has grown immensely. Praise Jesus!
Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus
My dear fellow Associate Members,
Jesus is calling special apostles to join a new division of the Shepherds of Christ Movement. Here is a message from Jesus given to Father Carter:
My beloved priest-companion, I am requesting that a new prayer movement be started under the direction of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. I am asking for volunteers who are willing to pray before the Blessed Sacrament for one hour, twice-weekly. Members of the Shepherds of Christ prayer chapters, as well as others, are to be invited to join this movement.
These apostles are to pray for the intentions I am giving you. For part of the hour they are to use the prayers of the Shepherds of Christ Associates Handbook. They may spend the rest of the hour as they so choose.
I will use this new prayer movement within My Shepherds of Christ Ministries in a powerful way to help in the renewal of My Church and the world. I will give great graces to those who join this movement. The name, Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, is to be given to this movement.
I am inviting My beloved Rita Ring to be coordinator for this activity.
I pour out the great love of My Sacred Heart to all. I am Jesus, Chief Shepherd of the flock.
This is indeed a special calling for us to unite in one heart with His Eucharistic Heart and pray for the following intentions:
- For the spread of the devotion to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary culminating in the reign of the Sacred Heart and the triumph of the Immaculate Heart.
- For the Pope.
- For all bishops of the world.
- For all priests.
- For all sisters and brothers in the religious life.
- For all members of the Shepherds of Christ Movement, and for the spread of this movement to the world.
- For all members of the Catholic Church.
- For all members of the human family.
- For all souls in purgatory.
end of Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart message
Associates
Prayer apostles
Father Carter on audio
Mary's Message tape
February 13, 1997
Talk given by Father Edward J. Carter, S.J.
Founder of Shepherds of Christ MinistriesTalk given February 13, 1997 National Conference of Shepherds of Christ, held at Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center, Norwood, Ohio.
Before we begin the rosary, I’d like to say a few words about the great importance of these days on the 13th of each month. Before Our Lord asked me to begin the Shepherds of Christ Ministries, the 1st dimension of that ministries was given to me on May the 31st, 1994. But before Our Lord asked me to start the ministries, I had been given a great devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. And I knew that everything concerning recent Marian apparitions centered around the Fatima message. The Fatima message is key to the peace of the world, as Our Lady of Fatima has told us. So because I had been given a great devotion to Our Lady of Fatima, it was no surprise to me when Our Lord told me, and through me the whole Movement, the great connection that there would be between Shepherds of Christ Ministries and helping to bring the Fatima message to conclusion. I’ll expand more upon that in my talk this afternoon. But here and now I’d like to read just a part of the message I received on October the 13th, 1994, when Our Lord called the full Ministries into existence. It had begun May 31st , some five or six months previous to that. But really October the 13th, 1994, marks the real birth, the complete birth of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. And part of the message I received on that day reads as follows:
"I am giving you this message on this day, the 77th anniversary of the great apparition at Fatima, because of the close connection between the Shepherds of Christ Movement and the Fatima message. The Fatima message is centered in devotion to My Heart and My Mother’s Heart, especially in consecration to Our Hearts. Shepherds of Christ Ministries is also centered in devotion to Our Hearts. I will use Shepherds of Christ Ministries as a great instrument in helping to bring about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart and the Reign of My Sacred Heart. Today then, October the 13th, 1994, the 77th anniversary of the great apparition at Fatima, marks the birth of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. I pour forth the great love of My Sacred Heart to all. I am Jesus, the Chief Shepherd of the Flock."
The calling of Our Lord to Shepherds of Christ to be present if possible at these meetings on the 13th of each month, and if they cannot be present physically, to be present in spirit with us then comes as no surprise. It’s merely another unfolding in the history of the Shepherds of Christ Movement and in the Fatima message.
These 13th of the months meetings are extremely important. They are great instruments which Our Lord and Our Lady are using to help bring to completion the Fatima message, which will result in that great era of peace, which Our Lady of Fatima promised eventually would come to the world.
So I ask you to take these meetings on the 13th of the month with the utmost seriousness, gratitude, thanksgiving, joy that Our Lord, for His own reasons has chosen Shepherds of Christ, the members thereof, the whole Ministries to play such a great part in the completion of the Fatima message. It comes as no surprise either that Our Lord gives special messages during the rosary on the meeting of the 13th, just as Our Lady of Fatima gave messages to the three visionaries at Fatima in 1917, from May through October. So at this stage of the Fatima message’s unfolding, it is no surprise that they continue, and in a new way and a new phase of the Fatima plan, give us these very special messages on the 13th. They are meant not only for us here present, they are meant for all members of the Movement, and eventually for the whole world. All these messages, all these rosaries on the 13th, eventually go onto our Internet with its world-wide audience.
So please, be very grateful to God for the messages He gives us during the rosary. Not everything which Rita says is a message. I think you’ll be able to distinguish when she’s receiving a message from Our Lord or from Our Lady, and when she is speaking from her own heart. Sometimes the transition is very quick and you may miss it, but there are both ways in which meditations are given on the decades: in strict locutions or messages, and then from Rita’s meditations or reflections herself.
(After the Rosary)
I wish to thank everybody who made the effort to be here with us, especially those people who had to travel from out of town. I’m sure the Lord has blessed you already and will continue to do so for your effort to be here. These are extremely important meetings on the 13th of the month. Our Lord has, Himself, instructed us in His great love and mercy for us and the whole world to have them. From these meetings, the messages of Our Lord, the previous message given at Fatima, go out to the whole world...
I sort of left off when I introduced the rosary by reading the rest, or at least a good part of the rest, of that message which I, myself, received on October the 13th, 1994, when Our Lord called the full Shepherds of Christ Ministries into existence.
"My beloved priest-companion, today I come to you with another mission."
He had already asked me on May the 31st of 1994 to start the priestly newsletter and then shortly after that to start the prayer chapters.
"I’m asking you to establish Shepherds of Christ Ministries. At My request you have already begun the priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ, and the prayer chapters, Shepherds of Christ Associates...
"I am giving you this message on this day, the 77th Anniversary of the Great Apparition at Fatima, because of the close connection between the Shepherds of Christ movement and the Fatima message. The Fatima message is centered in devotion to My Heart and My Mother’s Heart, especially in consecration to Our Hearts. Shepherds of Christ Ministries is also centered in devotion to Our Hearts. I will use Shepherds of Christ Ministries as a great instrument in helping to bring about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart and the reign of My Sacred Heart. When this occurs, My Church and the world will be experiencing the great era of peace promised by My Mother at Fatima.
"Today, then, October 13, 1994, the 77th Anniversary of the Great Apparition at Fatima, marks the birth of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. I pour forth the great love of My Sacred Heart to all. I am Jesus, Chief Shepherd of the flock."
So (this is) one of the most important messages given in the whole history of our Movement, and I think you can see why. Not only was Our Lord calling the Ministries into full bloom with this message, but He was making that great connection between Shepherds of Christ and the Fatima message.
You see how He says that both the Fatima message and Shepherds of Christ is centered in devotion, and especially in consecration, to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
So in my moments here before you this afternoon, I wish to speak a bit about this consecration.
I’ll start off by reading a message of Our Lord and from "Tell My People" which deals with this consecration to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
"My beloved friend, tell My people that I desire all to consecrate themselves to My Sacred Heart and to Mary’s Immaculate Heart. Tell them not to just recite words in making the Act of Consecration, but to realize what they are saying. Consecration to Our Hearts means a total gift of self. That means handing over everything to Me and My Mother. Consecration means a willingness to surrender completely to Me. In Baptism, one is consecrated to Father, Son and Holy Spirit. But how many fail to live out their consecration? I extend to all the invitation to renew this Baptismal consecration through consecration to My Heart and to My Mother’s Heart.
"My beloved companion, I have taught you what this consecration means. I have given you great peace, joy and happiness because you have made this consecration. I have taught you that you are to renew this act of consecration each day. I constantly remind you that you are to pray each day for the grace to more and more live the consecration. I have taught you that your consecration to Me and My Mother means that you constantly surrender yourself to Us and to Our care. I have taught you that the more you surrender yourself to Me, the more I live in you, and through you and for you. I have taught you that My great love for you longs to draw you more deeply into My Heart. I have shown you that I wish your Mother Mary to place you there within My Heart, and that the more you dwell within her Heart, the more deeply she places you within My Heart. Dwelling within Our Hearts, the Holy Spirit fashions you more and more in My likeness. The Father thus looks upon you with greater favor and takes you more closely to Himself.
"Tell My people all these wondrous truths. I am Lord and Master and I desire all to listen to My words. (end of message)"
And what beautiful words those are, which Christ gives all, to us all regarding the consecration to His Heart and Mary’s Heart.
I want to - after that message of Jesus telling us what consecration involves, I wish to single out a few aspects of the consecration, what it includes. One aspect of our consecration and especially the consecration which Our Lord has given us for Shepherds of Christ, one aspect of our consecration to Their Hearts is to realize that we are apostles and that we are called to go out into the world as we have heard in the rosary today, and other times to be the apostles of His love, of His love and His Mother’s love, and thus to help bring about that great era of peace promised by Our Lord, Our Lady of Fatima in which love will just dominate. That’s what it means when Our Lady says, "In the end," she says, "my Immaculate Heart will triumph." And along with that triumph of her Immaculate Heart will occur the Reign of the Sacred Heart. The Reign of the Sacred Heart and the triumph of the Immaculate Heart simply is a reign of love, a triumph of love and in that era there will be a type of love existent in the hearts of the members of the human family never known before. We will all be so united in love to the Father and the Holy Spirit through the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. And not only with Them, but with each other. What a glorious era we have to look forward to.
We are apostles. More and more as the Movement has gone on, Jesus is letting us know that, yes, we are supposed to pray. This is one of our primary duties in the chapters and elsewhere, to pray for priests and all others. But more and more He is telling us that now is the time to start to more and more move out from our chapters and to be apostles of His love, to help spread the Movement, to help spread the consecrations in the schools through the consecration cards, the Rosary Aves, both of which have the Imprimatur of the Cincinnati Archdiocese, to help spread all our materials, all our books and all the various rosaries, the rosary tapes. And you are called to do that.
In the beginning of the Movement, it was a relatively few people who were carrying the burden and carrying the Ministry on. We have entered a great new episode of the Movement, principally in that episode, principally centers itself around these meetings of the 13th. More and more people are realizing as they hear more and more the messages, more and more people in the Movement are hearing that Jesus is calling each one of us to be apostles of the Movement, to spread the Movement, to help implement the various ministries in all ways possible, to help spread the movement by starting new prayer chapters. Just think if we have something like, I guess, 2500-3000 members in the chapters and the Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus Movement here in this country and throughout the world-most of those, thus far, in this country.
But just think if each person would take it upon himself or herself to go all out to get one more new chapter formed. That’s not impossible, I don’t think that’s asking something heroic. That would double our chapters; that would double our prayer power. And so much of the Movement, the success of it, depends upon the prayer power coming out of the chapters and the Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus Movement. So He’s calling all of us; and how admirably so many in the Movement are answering. I wish to single out-just because all of you know about the Florida apparition-four or five, six, I don’t know how many now of our members from Rita’s core group have gone down to the apparition site. One of our main members, Tom A., has a home there at St. Petersburg, and Clearwater is just a short distance from there. And they’ve been going down and staying in his house, and each day going over to the apparition site and handing out our materials, especially the rosary message tape, but other materials also. This is what Our Lord, Our Lady has asked us to do. And they’ve had phenomenal success. We can’t keep enough materials down there. They just, the people are just so eager for it. But this is what. . .and they do it on their own time, they drive down, some of them spend three or four days, some a week and they come back. But what a marvelous example of their answering the call to the apostleship to which Jesus calls them in the Movement. And they’re doing just a tremendous amount of good.
And by the way when I’m talking and as long as I’m talking about Florida I might read you part of that message of Our Lady. You have read it, no doubt if you’d gotten a copy of the picture with the message on the back. But for my own purposes I want to read that here and now. So Mary tells us, this is the message which Rita received on December the 19th:
Mary speaks: My dear children, I give to you, my Son, Jesus, born in a stable in Bethlehem on Christmas morn’. He is the Almighty God the Light of the world.
I appear to you, my children on a bank in Florida. You have made money your god! Do you know how cold are your hearts? You turn away from my Son, Jesus for your money. Your money is your god.
I am Mary, your Mother. I do not appear as I once appeared to you.
When Rita got that message and when she gave it to me, both of us for a number of days thought that her number of apparitions was simply decreasing, but we both came to the conclusion; well Rita came to the conclusion and I followed after her, in agreement with her conclusion, Mary says, "I do not appear as I once appeared to you." She was saying apparently that, "I’m appearing to you in this new way, where the whole world can see me."
So many others’ apparition sites have had their believers of course, but many, many people throughout the world have doubted all this talk about the various apparition sites of Mary. She says, "I do not appear as I once appeared to you." She is appearing on a bank for the whole world to see.
Mary continues:
"I am asking you today to circulate my message given on a tape on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, December 12, 1996. Please circulate this tape now."
That’s one of the main things our apostles down in Florida are doing, handing out the tapes with this message.
Mary continues:
"Please circulate this tape now. Give it to as many people as you can. I am Mary, your Mother. Please circulate my Rosary Book."
She’s referring to a book which Shepherds of Christ Publications came out right around Christmas time. Hopefully all of you have received it in the mail, Rosaries from the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, as given to Rita. Now here’s the point I want to make here and now. Notice how she links up the apparition site with the circulation of her Rosary Book, and we are circulating the book there. But to me, there’s a very great phenomenon connected with the colors on the window, bank windows and the Rosary Book. And Rita herself pointed this out to me. Now this cover on this book-it was designed by Hal K. weeks and even months before the apparition of Our Lady on the bank in Florida. When did you start to design that Hal? (question asked to Harold K.) Almost, two years ago. And the colors were already selected months ago, right? Well if you’ll take the picture of the bank of the apparition of the bank on Florida, and this Rosary Book, you will notice that the colors are the same. To me, that’s a miraculous confirmation of the fact that Our Lady is connecting the apparition site on the bank in Florida with the Shepherds of Christ Ministries in a special way with the rosaries. It’s just phenomenal. You can check the colors out one by one. They’re a little bit brighter on the book, but because of the photography involved I think you can see how they wouldn’t be quite as bright on this. But check out the colors. They’re the same on the Rosary Book and on this. And these colors, as I say, were picked by Hal months and months before the apparition. You can take it for what you want, but for me it’s a miraculous confirmation of this message, that Our Lady chose those same colors which are on the front of her Rosary Book, to show the same colors relative to her apparition there on the bank in Florida.
Therefore, our Florida apostles are one of the many examples I could point out to you of how people in the Movement are more and more taking up the challenge, the invitation of Jesus and Mary to spread this Movement throughout the world. They have chosen the Shepherds of Christ Movement as a great instrument to help bring about the Fatima message. How privileged we are to be part of it, to be called to it. I believe, I’ve told you this before, at least some of you have heard me, I think this Movement is one of the greatest in the history of the Church. And I think history itself will bear that out. So how precious a gift each of us has been given by Our Lord in calling us to be members of this Movement.
Therefore, a very important aspect of our consecration to Their Hearts is to be apostles, to help spread all the ministries. Another aspect of our consecration is the idea of union. I think we’re all very well aware how the consecration unites us to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, and through Them to the Father and the Holy Spirit. But perhaps we don’t think often enough of that how it unites us with one another, in the Movement, in the Church, throughout the whole world. You cannot grow in union with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit and Mary, without growing in union with all your neighbors. And this is the tough part. It’s relatively easy to love Father, Son and Holy Spirit and Mary, isn’t it? Three Persons in One God infinitely perfect and Mary a human person, perfect, free from all sin. It’s easy to love the Triune Persons and Mary, relatively speaking. But it’s not all that easy to love each other all the time, isn’t it? And yet that’s what Jesus calls us to. Jesus literally died for each and every person. And no matter how unattractive a person is in their behavior, Jesus still died for that person. If He loved that person enough to die for that person, then certainly we have to love them, him or her, and especially within the Movement. Satan is violently attacking us, he will always try to cause division in the Movement. But if we are going to be examples - and we are called to that, to be examples to the whole Church and the whole world of what it’s going to be like in the new era, when we all exist in such great loving union with each other in Christ. We are the forerunners of that. We’re helping to prepare the way for that for the whole Church, for the whole world. Not only us, but we have been given a special mission for that. So we have to be united in love with each other, if we have differences, we work them out in love and in peace. We work them out in love and in peace. In one of the Blue Books, Jesus says, "The glass is either half-empty or it’s half-full." I look at my neighbor, whether he or she is in the Movement or outside of it. I can either look at the half-empty part of the glass or the half-full part. I can either look at that person’s faults and concentrate on them, or I can concentrate on the great goodness which is inherently theirs. If they are in the state of sanctifying grace, their soul is magnificently beautiful, despite the blemishes of their failings of their sins. When I look at a person, do I look at the half-empty part or the half-full part?
Everyday I ask you to pray for a growing unity in the Movement. What Our Lord has allowed us to accomplish so far in less than three years is just miraculous, I think it’s just miraculous. The sign becomes ever and ever greater that He started this Movement, not me. I was just the instrument which He chose to head it up. He has given me so many beautiful people to help me do the Movement and that includes all of you. He has given you so many beautiful companions in the Movement. Let us concentrate on that part of it. This is the only way we’re going to be models to the rest of the Church and the world, of the profound union that Our Lord calls us to, not only with Himself, but with each other.
Strength for all this, day after day, it’s not easy to live this way, is it? But as I said in my homily, the great strength we have for that is the Eucharist. The power of the Eucharist is much greater than your faults or my faults or the faults of others in the Movement that surround you, or the faults of others in your parish, or the rest of the Church and the world. He can give you the strength to arise above your own faults and the faults of others around you, and march forward in the most positive way towards this great new era. Oh what a gift the Eucharist is.
St. Julian Eymard, the founder of the Blessed Sacrament Fathers, who gave us such beautiful writings on the Eucharist, in one of his writings on the Eucharist he says:
"It is true also that the world does all in its power to prevent us from loving Jesus in the most Blessed Sacrament with a real and practical love, to prevent us from visiting Him and cripple the effects of His love. This world engrosses the attention of souls; it finds and enslaves them with external occupations in order to deter them from dwelling too long on the love of Jesus. It even fights directly against this practical love and represents it as optional, as practicable at most only in a convent. And the devil wages incessant warfare on our love for Jesus in the most Blessed Sacrament. He knows that Jesus is there, living and substantially present; that by Himself He is drawing souls and taking direct possession of them. The devil tries to efface the thought of the Eucharist in us, and the good impression made by it; for in his mind, that should decide the issue of the struggle." (That is if we give in to Jesus’ desire to possess us in the Eucharist.) "And yet God is all love. This gentle Savior pleads with us from the Host: "Love Me as I have loved you; abide in My love! I came to cast the fire of love on the earth, and My most ardent desire is that it should set your hearts on fire." 1
1St. Peter Eymard, "The Most Blessed Sacrament Is Not Loved!," as in The Treasury of Catholic Wisdom, Fr. John Hardon, S.J., ed.; Ignatius Press, p. 384.
Union amongst ourselves through our union with Jesus and Mary and Father and Holy Spirit. Each of you is so precious to Jesus. He has given each of you a very, very, very special gift, precious gift, in calling you to be involved in this Movement. Very early on in the Movement, it was July 31st of 1994, on the Feast of St. Ignatius, He often gives me very important messages on key feasts, and the Feast of St. Ignatius is a feast for Jesuits, Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits. And He told me in that message that He would give great, great, great graces to those who join the Movement, and hope I’m sure, all of you who have been in the Movement have experienced those great graces. In appreciation for the great graces Jesus has given you in the Movement, I ask you, with great joy and a great sense of responsibility and a great sense of privilege, to do what you can to implement the ministries of the Movement. No one else can do your role, can carry out your part. You are preciously unique, no one exists like you now, no one ever has, no one ever will. It’s you alone who can give Jesus the opportunity to do what He wants through your humanity to help spread the Movement. To the extent that you answer Jesus and give yourselves to Him, and work as time and energy permits, as your other duties permit to help spread the ministries, to that extent you give Him an opportunity which no one else can give Him, and to the extent that you hold back, to this extent He loses this opportunity which no one else can give Him.
A precious Savior who has done so much to each of us. Certainly He deserves our full loving response. As I kneel before the crucifix each day, either before a actual crucifix or one in my mind, let us ask ourselves those questions posed to us by Ignatius Loyola, "What have I done for Christ?" "What am I now doing for Christ?" "What ought I to do for Christ?"
end of February 13, 1997 talk by Fr. Carter
March 26, 2002
From the Vatican
Dear Mr. Weickert,
The Holy Father has asked me to thank you for the book
which you sent to him at the request of the Reverend Edward J.
Carter, S.J. He very much appreciates the sentiments which
prompted this presentation.His Holiness will remember Father Carter in his prayers.
Invoking upon him joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ,
he cordially imparts his Apostolic Blessing.Sincerely yours,
23 May 2002
Dear Mr. Weickert,
Thank you very much for the copy of Father Edward J. Carter, S.J.'s book, Shepherds of Christ, Spirituality Newsletters 2, which arrived here in Rome recently. Thank you also for your own letter of March 24th in which you offer a wonderful overview of the mission of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. Certainly the publication and distribution of the newsletters must represent a most satisfying aspect of your commitment.
With prayers and best wishes to you, Mr. Weickert, and to all who are a part of the Shepherds of Christ Ministries family, I am,
Sincerely in Our Lord,
________________
Superior of a very large order in the world
From Rome, Italy
April 29, 2002
USA
Dear Mr. Weickert;
Thank you for sending the books and materials by Father Edward Carter. He was a great apostle of priestly spirituality and his voice is sorely needed today.
Sincerely yours,
Cardinal___________
April 25, 2002
Dear Fr. John,
Thank you very much for your kind letters dated April 7 and 16 last together with the many enclosures concerning initiatives started by Fr. Edward J. Carter.
I am pleased to inform you that the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary is widespread in this Archdiocese, as also the Divine Mercy devotion. In fact, our Archdiocese has been solemnly consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on August 15, 1997, Feast of Our Lady's Assumption and the 50th Anniversary of _____'s independence. This consecration is renewed every year in all our parishes. I do it officially in our Cathedral. Besides, all families are encouraged to consecrate themselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and this year we are going to make a special drive so that the image of the Sacred Heart can be enthroned in those homes where it is still not done in our Archdiocese.
It might interest you to know that in the 80 of the 113 parishes in this Archdiocese, we have daily adoration to the Blessed Sacrament from early morning till late in the evening. The practice of having all night adoration in parishes once a month is growing steadily.
I was deeply impressed by the photographs you sent me of the image of Our Blessed Mother in the Church of Our Lady of Clearwater. It is touching to note the tender love and concern of our Heavenly Queen.
I recommend the Archdiocese of _____ and my pastoral ministry to your special prayers. Thank you very much in anticipation. Rest assured of a regular memento at Holy Mass.
With cordial regards and sincere good wishes, I remain
Yours fraternally in Corde Mariae
Cardinal _________
June 11, 2002
Dear Mr. Weickert:
His Eminence __________ has asked me to thank you for having kindly sent him a copy of the book Shepherds of Christ by Father Edward J. Carter, S.J.
The Cardinal takes this occasion to encourage you in your work of supporting the spiritual life of priests and conveys his prayer best wishes.
With kind regards, I remain
Sincerely yours in ChristPersonal Secretary
Office of the Cardinal
May 1, 2002
Dear Mr. Weickert:
On behalf of His Eminence, I thank you most sincerely for your letter of April 7, 2002 and for the materials you enclosed written by the last Reverend Edward J. Carter, S.J.
Shepherds of Christ Ministries, founded by Father Carter and now under your leadership, fulfills an important role in the Church: praying for our priests and encouraging the prayer life of priests. The devotion of Shepherds of Christ Ministries and Father Carter to the
Hearts of Jesus and Mary is surely an efficacious means to the sanctification of the whole world. Please remember the priests of the Archdiocese of _________ in your prayers.With the assurance of remembrance in His Eminence's
Masses and prayers for the success of your work on behalf of priests and for the repose of Father Carter's soul, may I remainSincerely,
____________
Rev. Monsg. _______
Secretary to the Cardinal
Copyright
© 2005 Shepherds of Christ.
