Jesus told me to put the
glass in the
Guadalupe Statues and Fatima Statues
12" Guadalupe Statues -
$200
We have a very limited supply.
China Retreat
July 10th - 13th
Friday Mass 12:00 noon
Saturday Mass 12:00 noon
Sunday Mass St. Boniface 8:00 am
Monday Mass 12:30pm
July 7, 2009
Song of America
Mary: My precious America I appeared
in Clearwater because I love
you so very much —
I want to tell you — you must
obey the laws of your heavenly Father
I give you so much love and as a
Mother of love I deliver a message
that tells you the truth —
With all your bridges and water you
live more and more ignoring your
God, the commandments and
His Word —
Look America at your beautiful autumn
trees — so glorious, but reminding
you that growth has its day to
flower and to die —
Long cold winter nights telling you it is
a time to take stock and to
prepare for the days of beauty that come
and go with the seasons —
Your buildings tower bigger as men see
their plans tower over others men's
plans and you say
"who will be over the other?"
"who will be greater among men?"
Your building should be to give honor and glory
to God —
Your lives lived to reverence, serve and
praise your God —
Where is your 'power seat' America?
The Vatican is the seat of the Church
when the pope resides — and if you
look over the last century alone since
I appeared at Fatima how your popes
have been so very important to the unity
and spirituality of this world —
Your buildings tower over like your
personalities — are they to serve man-kind —
are they to lead men to heaven? Is this your
goal America —
America, America, land of plenty I have
appeared to you —
|
Our Lady of Clearwater Florida
|
|
July 5, 2000
|
September 5, 2000
|
October 5, 2000
|
November 5, 2000
|
December 5, 2000
|
|
January 5, 2001
|
February 5, 2001
|
March 5, 2001
|
April 5, 2001
|
May 5, 2001
|
|
June 5, 2001
|
July 5, 2001
|
August 5, 2001
|
September 5, 2001
|
October 5, 2001
|
|
November 5, 2001
|
December 5, 2001
|
January 5, 2002
|
February 5, 2002
|
March 5, 2002
|
|
April 5, 2002
|
May 5, 2002
|
June 5, 2002
|
July 5, 2002
|
September
5, 2002
|
|
October 5, 2002
|
November 5, 2002
|
January 5, 2003
|
February 5, 2003
|
|
April 5, 2003
|
May 5, 2003
|
July 5, 2003
|
August 5, 2003
|
September 5, 2003
|
|
January 5, 2004
|
January 5, 2004
|
January 5, 2004
|
January 5, 2004
|
|
February 5, 2004
|
February 5, 2004
|
February 5, 2004 |
February 5, 2004 |
February 5, 2004
|
|
February 5, 2004
|
March 5, 2004
|
|
March 5, 2004
|
March 5, 2004
|
|
March 5, 2004
|
March 5, 2004
|
I am Our Lady of Fatima in the America's
I deliver my special message to you and you
ignore my message
Mary by day
July 5, 2000 |
by night
July 5, 2000 |
The Holy Spirit will fill you with
light and you will know the truth I
speak, but my children you must
believe, you must have faith — your
lives rooted in the Gospel of Jesus and
praying your rosary —
I cry out to you once again with
tears of blood and I say my children —
pray the 7 sorrows — meditate on the
sorrows of my Heart to watch my Son die
and then to see my children today suffering
in this world and you ignore my message —
even after your heavenly Father allowed
me to appear so many years for all to see —
What about my little babies, my
children walking into this mess of lies
and anger and sin
Oh America, I appeared here because I
am your Mother and I love you so
much — America look at your buildings —
so much money for
a hotel and you won't listen to my
cry to do as I request to reach the
souls — pray the rosary and spread our
images —
Oh my people — God is the answer to your
problems — your world is becoming more
rebellious against God's will every day —
Pray America as my Son has told you
Pray the rosary
Pray in the schools
Pray as we have told you
shipped from the printers
December 17, 1996 |
Mary appeared
December 17, 1996 |
Spread the School Rosary Program and
homemade rosaries to the schools —
Pray on the days of retreat from the building in
Clearwater —
Pray daily there 6:20 and in China before
the exposed Eucharist
Pray in your homes with the radio
prayer services, retreat, 6:20
Come to the China retreat and pray —
make reparation for the sins
of men
Pray especially on the 5ths and 13ths —
Be united in prayer and petitioning
your God for mercy as never before —
America, I am Mary, Our Lady of Clearwater,
Our Lady of the Universe, Our Lady of
Peace, Our Lady of Fatima in the Americas —
do as my Son Jesus said and help with
this mailing of the Mass Book and Fr. Carter's
Books and the letter on consecration and unity
to the Foreign Bishops —
Circulate the messages given by Fr. Carter in
Tell My People — now which must be reprinted
These message so important today need to
circulate
Tell My People
click
Help me my children, please
listen
13 Years Ago - before Clearwater
Mary's Message
from the Rosary of August 27, 1996
Mary: I
stood beneath the cross of my Son, and my Heart was in such pain for
I saw Him before my eyes. I saw Him covered with blood. I saw Him
die. My Heart, my children, my Heart to watch my Son, but my Heart,
my Heart, how I suffered for my little children of the world that
give in to this world and give up the love of my Son. O my little
children of light, I give you this message. Carry this light into
the darkness for your Mother Mary, for I stood beneath the cross and
I cried. I cried for the little ones. I cried for the young ones,
the ones that do not care and will lose their souls. How do I make
you see for you will not listen to me? What can I do? I come. I
appear. I beg. I plead. I give you these gifts from my Son, and you
reject me. I do not deliver messages very often anymore for I have
been ignored. The message is the same. You do not read the messages
I have given to you. Please help me. Help the little children. I
appear. I appear. I appear, and I am ignored. I stood beneath the
cross, and I cried. I cried, and my Heart was in such anguish for my
little children, for I am searching for them this day as I searched
for the Child Jesus. Please, please help me. I cannot hold back the
hand of my Son any longer. I am Mary, your Mother. I ask you to help
my children. You are my children of light.
end of Mary's
Message
Your memorials, your heroes —
My people you need Jesus —
Jesus is the Savior of the world —
Song: A Song from Jesus
In living according to the Father's
will there is freedom
What is freedom, America?
Freedom is doing God's will.
I appear in Clearwater to deliver this
message — hear me —
Your grounds America are beautiful —
your green rolling hills, the golden
fields of grain, the rivers to water
your crops — you have been blessed
with plenty
Where is your gratitude, my children,
You are blessed who know your Catholic
Faith — Spread the Blue Books and
the Rosary Books so people will
live the gospel in their lives —
America heartland —
Land of plenty — farms with food to
feed the world —
Feed the hungry the love letters of
Jesus in God's Blue Book
Cry no longer America
Let the light of Jesus shine
You have built night-clubs, neighborhoods
gated for the rich, reach out and
spread the light of Jesus to the poor —
open your pocket-books and give
to that — that is lasting and doesn't
stop giving
Play your music for God —
Shout on the rooftops about your
Church, your love of God — baptism,
the Eucharist —
Let me hear your efforts put into
ETERNAL LIFE AMERICA
What are good times? —
obeying God's will
obeying God's commandments America —
Let your bridges be bridges of love —
let the peace in your heart be
because of obedience to God
Be a fisher of men
Be a fish in water —
those fish outside of water
die
You were created for God, America —
to love and serve God and love each other —
Surrounded by water —
Rivers in our land
The beauty of lakes
The rich land —
The homes of the rich —
The tall buildings —
Cities that never sleep —
America — land of plenty —
open your spiritual eyes —
open your eyes for what is everlasting
God gives you the animals and fish
for food — the fields to feed
you — you have industry and
growth — the sun and moon and the stars —
the air — America — richly blessed
But in the building God the Father
gave you with my image —
you ignore me and
ignore my message today
January 25, 1997
Mary: I
am Mary. I am requesting that you continue to pray the
rosary novena daily for the following intentions:
For the spread of the rosary, circulation and
publication of these rosary meditations, for the
Rosary Book and Children's Rosary Books,
for the Rosary Aves and consecrations to be distributed
and used by school children, for the Priestly
Newsletter Books, for the Mass Book, for
all materials receiving the imprimatur, for its
publication and quick distribution, for the distribution
of Mary's Message tape and the Rosary Book
and the connection with the Shepherds of Christ
Movement and the apparition in Florida;
Hurricane's ravaged Florida after
this 2004, 2005
America pray —
America your Father has blessed you —
praise God
love God
serve God
Pray for the Holy Spirit, my Spouse
to give your wisdom
Pray for the Reign of Jesus' Sacred Heart
and Triumph of My Immaculate Heart
America — have you turned your
bounty into spiritual
bankruptcy —
America, listen to me
pray the rosary —
live by the Gospel
Consecrate your hearts to Jesus and Mary
Spread these prayer chapters
Jesus gave Fr. Carter
America, I cry to you — have faith
in your God — not your
big buildings and commerce
Obey the Commandments of God —
pray for the priests, the Church and
the world
This is a message of hope from
your Mother
August 1, 1994
Pray For The Success Of The Priestly
Newsletter - Shepherds of Christ
R. The following is the first
official message I received before the statue of Mary at Our Lady of the
Holy Spirit Center. It is a personal message for Father Carter.
Mary: (in front of the glowing
statue of Our Lady of Sorrows) I am the Immaculate Heart. My Heart is
glowing for love of all my beloved children. I am your most loving
Mother. I am with you this day. Pray for the success of the priestly
newsletter Shepherds of Christ. I am guarding your way. You will receive
such graces to accomplish this task! Grace from God is so abundantly
bestowed on you and will lead to the success of this endeavor! Pray for
this cause at the Center. The priests will lead the people to the love
of My beloved Son. This is no little task. It will take many prayers and
graces. Pray hard, little one. Your prayers will change many hearts.
I am Mary, your Immaculate Mother. I
bring this message to My beloved priest-son.
end of August 1, 1994
July 31, 1994
Words of Jesus to Members of
Shepherds of Christ
Associates:
"My beloved priest-companion, I intend to use the
priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ, and the movement,
Shepherds of Christ Associates, in a powerful way for the renewal of
My Church and the world.
"I will use the newsletter and the chapters of
Shepherds of Christ Associates as a powerful instrument for
spreading devotion to My Heart and My Mother's Heart.
"I am calling many to become members of Shepherds of
Christ Associates. To all of them I will give great blessings. I
will use them as instruments to help bring about the triumph of the
Immaculate Heart and the reign of My Sacred Heart. I will give great
graces to the members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. I will
call them to be deeply united to My Heart and to Mary's Heart as I lead
them ever closer to My Father in the Holy Spirit."
- Message from Jesus to Father Edward
J. Carter, S.J., Founder, as given on July 31, 1994,
feast of Saint
Ignatius Loyola, Founder of the Society of Jesus (The Jesuits)
God will bless you with spiritual
fruit — He will give you a
land flowing with milk and
honey —
not this rebelliousness of some
to God's wishes —
Give God reverence — praise Him —
Thanks Him for the gifts America —
You are RICHLY BLESSED —
God loves you so —
God the Father because of this love
sent me to Clearwater and you
ignore the message I came
to deliver with God's love
July 5, 2000
Jesus: I brought you out of the desert —
My people the answer is in God —
You have grumbled in your
bounty, when you should
have thanked Me — you
spit in My face —
You used My holy Name in Vain —
You profaned Me and
Yet I give to you My hands open
to love
Jesus: You have planes that can fly you around
the world — from state to state,
from the Atlantic to the Pacific
from New York to Florida
And yet the airports are cold —
disunited —
evil magazines are taken on
the plane —
In the skies
Mary: Pray the rosary in the plane —
Pray for the priests, the Church and the
world in the plane
When high above in the plane —
look below and love them
praying for the souls Jesus died for —
Pray America —
Let your land bring forth a
rich harvest —
Not ice and glaciers —
hearts cold and filled with metal
and rock, America
R. Lord pardon the sins of your people —
Oh Mary our Mother intercede to God
for us for mercy
Oh Jesus help men to know the
riches of the Catholic faith —
Help us spread the Blue Books — so
they know You are truly present
in the Blessed Sacrament —
Mary: America let your lands be holy and
filled with people of great
faith —
loving and serving God
R. Holy Spirit outpour your
grace
Holy Spirit fill our hearts
with the fire of God's
love
Come and renew the face of the
earth —
Jesus says —
Given to Fr. Carter
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
Daniel 7: 9-10, 13-14
While I was watching,
thrones were set in place
and one most venerable took his seat.
His robe was white as snow,
the hair of his head as pure as wool.
His throne was a blaze of flames,
its wheels were a burning fire.
A stream of fire poured out,
issuing from his presence.
A thousand thousand waited on him,
ten thousand times ten thousand
stood before him.
The court was in session
and the books lay open.
I was gazing into the visions of the
night,
when I saw,
coming on the clouds of heaven,
as it were a son of man.
He came to the One most venerable
and was led into his presence.
On him was conferred rule,
honour and kingship,
and all peoples, nations and languages
became his servants.
His rule is an everlasting rule
which will never pass away,
and his kingship will never come to an end.
Psalm 97: 1-2, 5-6, 9
Yahweh
is king! Let earth rejoice,
the many isles be glad!
Cloud, black cloud enfolds him,
saving justice and judgement the foundations of his
throne.
The mountains melt like wax,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim his saving justice,
all nations see his glory.
For you are Yahweh,
Most High over all the earth,
far transcending all gods.
2 Peter 1: 16-19
When we told you about the power and the
coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we were not slavishly
repeating cleverly invented myths; no, we had seen his
majesty with our own eyes. He was honoured and glorified
by God the Father, when a voice came to him from the
transcendent Glory, This is my Son, the Beloved; he
enjoys my favour. We ourselves heard this voice
from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain.
So we have confirmation of the words of
the prophets; and you will be right to pay attention to
it as to a lamp for lighting a way through the dark,
until the dawn comes and the morning star rises in your
minds.
Mark 9: 2-10
Six days later, Jesus took with him
Peter and James and John and led them up a high mountain
on their own by themselves. There in their presence he
was transfigured: his clothes became brilliantly white,
whiter than any earthly bleacher could make them. Elijah
appeared to them with Moses; and they were talking to
Jesus. Then Peter spoke to Jesus, ‘Rabbi,’ he said, ‘it
is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three
shelters, one for you, one for Moses and one for
Elijah.’ He did not know what to say; they were so
frightened. And a cloud came, covering them in shadow;
and from the cloud there came a voice, ‘This is my Son,
the Beloved. Listen to him.’ Then suddenly, when they
looked round, they saw no one with them any more but
only Jesus.
As they were coming down from the mountain he warned
them to tell no one what they had seen, until after the
Son of man had risen from the dead. They observed the
warning faithfully, though among themselves they
discussed what ‘rising from the dead’ could mean.
Psalm 90: 2, 3-5, 12-14, 16
Before the
mountains were born,
before the earth and the world came to birth,
from eternity to eternity you are God.
You bring human beings to
the dust,
by saying, ‘Return, children of Adam.’
A thousand years are to you
like a yesterday which has passed,
like a watch of the night.
You flood them with sleep
—in the morning they will be like growing grass:
Teach us to count up the
days that are ours,
and we shall come to the heart of wisdom.
Come back, Yahweh! How long must we wait?
Take pity on your servants.
Each morning fill us with
your faithful love,
we shall sing and be happy all our days;
Show your servants the
deeds you do,
let their children enjoy your splendour!
R. God intends us to work
Genesis 3: 17-19
To the man he
said, ‘Because you listened to the voice of your
wife and ate from the tree of which I had forbidden
you to eat,
Accursed be the
soil because of you!
Painfully will you get your food from it
as long as you live.
It will yield you brambles and thistles,
as you eat the produce of the land.
By the sweat of your face
will you earn your food,
until you return to the ground,
as you were taken from it.
For dust you are
and to dust you shall return.’
Colossians 3: 1-11
Since you have been
raised up to be with Christ, you must look for the
things that are above, where Christ is, sitting at God’s
right hand. Let your thoughts be on things above, not on
the things that are on the earth, because you have died,
and now the life you have is hidden with Christ in God.
But when Christ is revealed—and he is your life—you,
too, will be revealed with him in glory.
That is why you must kill everything in
you that is earthly: sexual vice, impurity, uncontrolled
passion, evil desires and especially greed, which is the
same thing as worshipping a false god; it is precisely
these things which draw God's retribution upon those who
resist. And these things made up
your way of life when you were living among such people,
but now you also must give up all these things: human
anger, hot temper, malice, abusive language and dirty
talk; and do not lie to each other. You have stripped
off your old behaviour with your old self, and you have
put on a new self which will progress towards true
knowledge the more it is renewed in the image of its
Creator; and in that image there is no room for
distinction between Greek and Jew, between the
circumcised and uncircumcised, or between barbarian and
Scythian, slave and free. There is only Christ: he is
everything and he is in everything.
Zechariah 2: 5-9, 14-15
Then, raising my eyes, I
had a vision. There was a
man with a measuring
line in his hand. I asked him, 'Where are you going?' He
said, 'To measure Jerusalem, to calculate her width and
length.' And then, while the
angel who was talking
to me walked away, another
angel came out to meet
him. He said to him, 'Run, and tell that young
man this, "Jerusalem is
to remain unwalled, because of the great number of men
and cattle inside. For I–Yahweh
declares–shall be a wall of fire all round her and I
shall be the
Glory within her." '
Sing, rejoice, daughter
of Zion, for now I am coming to live among you -Yahweh
declares! And on that day many nations
will be converted to
Yahweh. Yes, they
will become his people,
and they
will live among you.
Then you
will know that
Yahweh
Sabaoth has sent me to
you!
Matthew 25: 6
But at midnight there was
a cry, "Look! The bridegroom! Go out and meet him."
John 14: 14
If you ask me anything in my name,
I will do it.
Readings Today's Mass
Genesis 32: 23-33
That same night he got up and, taking his two wives, his
two slave-girls and his eleven children, crossed the
ford of the Jabbok. After he had taken them across the
stream, he sent all his possessions over too.
And Jacob
was left alone.
Then someone wrestled with him until daybreak
who, seeing that
he could not master him, struck him on the hip socket,
and Jacob's hip was dislocated as he wrestled with him.
He said, "Let me go, for day is breaking." Jacob
replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."
The other said, "What is your name?" "Jacob," he
replied. He said, "No longer are you to be called Jacob,
but Israel since you have shown your strength against
God and men and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked,
"Please tell me your name." He replied, "Why do you ask
my name?" With that, he blessed him there.
Jacob
named the place Peniel, "Because I have seen God face to
face," he said, "and have survived." The sun rose as he
passed Peniel, limping from his hip. That is why to this
day the Israelites do not eat the thigh sinew which is
at the hip socket: because he had struck Jacob at the
hip socket on the thigh sinew.
Matthew 9: 32-38
They had only just left
when suddenly a man was brought to him, a dumb demoniac.
And when the devil was driven out, the dumb man spoke
and the people were amazed and said, ‘Nothing like this
has ever been seen in Israel.’ But the Pharisees said,
‘It is through the prince of devils that he drives out
devils.’
Jesus made a tour through
all the towns and villages, teaching in their
synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and
curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
And when he saw the
crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed
and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he
said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is rich but the
labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to
send out labourers to his harvest.’
The Angelus
The Angel of the Lord
declared to Mary:
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Hail Mary . . .
Behold the handmaid of
the Lord:
Be it done unto me according to Thy word.
Hail Mary . . .
And the Word was made
Flesh:
And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary . . .
Pray for us, O Holy
Mother of God,
that we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray:
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our
hearts that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Your
Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by
His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His
Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Prayer of St. Francis
Lord, make me an
instrument of your
peace.
Where there is hatred,
let me sow love.
Where there is injury,
pardon.
Where there is doubt,
faith.
Where there is despair,
life.
Where there is darkness,
light.
Where there is sadness,
joy.
O Divine Master, grant
that I may not so much
seek
to be consoled, as to
console;
to be understood, as to
understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that
we receive,
it is in pardoning that
we are pardoned.
It is in dying that we
are born to eternal
life.
R. Pope John Paul II was shot May 13, 1981.
Mary:
Teach your little ones to pray —
Teach them to make the sign of the cross.
Teach them to say the Hail Mary young —
R. It is not wrong to be upset about
evil; it can be wrong how we
express our anger.
We must stay rooted in God — we
live for Him — what is important
is our soul —
Men can hurt our bodies, but
we must choose what is
God's commands and think of our soul.
A person who is to marry gives
their pledge to another in marriage
rooted in God —
A person called to religious life
commits to poverty, chastity and
obedience — Some orders do not
demand poverty vows, but at least
chastity and obedience.
In a religious order one is
consumed in love for God — for He
calls them to be His Spouse in a
special way — they are not single they
are married in a special spousal
union to God — they are to be
consumed in their love for God —
husbands and wives love each
other — religious pledge themselves
to God —
With regard to obedience — one
obeys their superior — Those over
them, when superiors are doing
God's will — the religious are
to be obeyed even when one disagrees
with their superior over certain matters —
We who have been given such gifts
in America may fail to see how
awful World War II and other wars were.
We can take for granted many things
and live a life of constant selfishness
and ingratitude. God has blessed
us in so many ways and the devil
wants us selfish and focused on
ingratitude. Many of our parents
had us baptized and taught us
about our faith — some were
persecuted in wars for their
faith —
We should come from a place
of seeing through the eyes of gratitude
if we are always looking for more for
ourselves we can grow further
and further from God who calls us
to love and give to Him and others —
We are to thank God for our religious
training — baptism — our
gifts given through the Catholic faith.
If we see through the eyes of gratitude
we have a giving attitude of helping
and loving others —
So many people were killed in World War II —
let us look at the July 13 message of
Mary at Fatima in 1917.
Some men in Poland were not even
allowed to train to be priests — Religious were
killed — We take what we have been
given for granted many times —
Mary has appeared and she has told
us what we must do to please Our God.
We must respect the dignity of
life — from birth to death —
Many fought for the freedom we
have — many fought for the Church —
many gave and suffered in the Church
saints, priests, sisters, St. Paul
was beheaded —
When I see the lack of gratitude
for such a gift we have in the
Church and God's goodness to us —
Jesus who died and rose for us so
we can share in His life
I want to cry —
To be called to be the spouse of
Jesus and pray and give ourselves
for the children of the Church is
little compared to Jesus and St. Peter,
St. Paul and those who suffered —
Think of the attitude today of
many — so willful against God —
against the commandments —
against the rules of the Church —
The attitude reflects the attitude
of the world —
The prodigal son —
Luke 15: 11-31
Then he said, ‘There was a man who
had two sons. The younger one said to his father,
"Father, let me have the share of the estate that
will come to me," So the father divided the property
between them. A few days later, the younger son got
together everything he had and left for a distant
country where he squandered his money on a life of
debauchery.
When he had spent it all, that
country experienced a severe famine, and now he
began to feel the pinch; so he hired himself out to
one of the local inhabitants who put him on his farm
to feed the pigs. And he would willingly have filled
himself with the husks the pigs were eating but no
one would let him have them. Then he came to his
senses and said, "How many of my father’s hired men
have all the food they want and more, and here am I
dying of hunger! I will leave this place and go to
my father and say: Father, I have sinned against
heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be
called your son; treat me as one of your hired men."
So he left the place and went back to his father.
‘While he was still a long way off,
his father saw him and was moved with pity. He ran
to the boy, clasped him in his arms and kissed him.
Then his son said, : "Father, I have sinned against
heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be
called your son." But the father said to his
servants, "Quick! Bring out the best robe and put it
on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his
feet. Bring the calf we have been fattening and kill
it; we will celebrate by having a feast, because
this son of mine was dead and has come back to life;
he was lost and is found." And they began to
celebrate.
‘Now the elder son was out in the
fields, and on his way back, as he drew near the
house, he could hear music and dancing. Calling one
of the servants he asked what it was all about. The
servant told him, "Your brother has come, and your
father has killed the calf we had been fattening
because he has got him back safe and sound." He was
angry then and refused to go in, and His father came
out and began to urge him to come in; but he
retorted to his father, "All these years I have
slaved for you and never once disobeyed any orders
of yours, yet you never offered me so much as a kid
for me to celebrate with my friends. But, for this
son of yours, when he comes back after swallowing up
your property—he and his
loose women—you kill the
calf we have been fattening.
‘The father said, "My son, you are
with me always and all I have is yours. But it was
only right we should celebrate and rejoice, because
your brother here was dead and has come to life; he
was lost and is found.’
When Jesus performed miracles
those in power over the people
wanted Jesus done away with —
they wanted the people recognizing
them — they were enemies of Jesus —
We are to be grateful for our
vocations as religious
Those religious are married
to Jesus and they are to pray and
love the children of the Church.
Pope John Paul II suffered in
Poland because of the Nazis, he
entered the underground seminary
to become a priest — His father
died —
There are so many who went before
us — There are as many hearts as
faces — some people full of anger and
hatred calling themselves righteous
and some with hearts like Jesus
working more and more to spread His
love and His ways and His truth
in the world —
The world has veered worse and
worse doing many evil things
and we can reflect these ways
or follow the Gospel to follow
Jesus' ways — no matter how the
world reflects ways not like Jesus.
Our measuring stick is to follow
in Jesus' footsteps, live the Gospel
and obey the commandments —
God gives us the rules to be
happy — to be loving more likened
to Him — even in marriage God
blesses the union of man and woman —
God allows them to co-create children
from their love — God has blessed
women and men in marriage to
grow in greater holiness and love
and form a family of love to bless
the world — This is wonderful —
Many today who could stay married
divorce because of selfishness —
this attitude of commitment in
marriage can reflect this attitude
of lack of permanent commitment
in the world —
We must trust God — God has a
plan for us — we must follow this
plan with gratitude — not grumbling
and hating — hurting others —
whining
God has blessed America and Mary
appeared in Clearwater to give
us a message of spreading peace
to the world —
If our attitude is selfishness and
ingratitude toward this plan
we are poor workers in the
vineyard of the Father —
Men come to work in the vineyard
and they grumbled and complained
day long — how much work did
they get done? Would those
hiring them keep such grumblers
and people accomplishing little
work —
In religious life one is married
in a special way to God — its
like taking a ring in marriage —
their partner is God — Why would
you treat God your husband
like the marriage is of little
account to you —
The children of the marriage
are the children of the Church
and the world —
Like a husband may work and
bring home support for the wife
and children —
A religious is married to God
and they are to love their children
of the Church and the world —
love the babies —
Religious have a special
mission — they are not single —
they are married to God — they
are to love — not give into
hatred, selfishness, violence,
bitterness, envy, jealousy, anger —
seeking dominance over their
superiors, but be examples
where by others will see their
love and learn how to follow
in the footprints of Jesus —
Children in a marriage learn
from parents how to be holy
obedient —
Religious are to teach the
children of the Church about
holiness by their own example
and their love
they should not reflect the discontent,
selfishness of the world — they
are to be examples of how Jesus
is, not follow the weaknesses and
impurities of the world —
To move the Church in a place
more likened to Christ — we must
be more likened to Christ —
If the persons of the mystical
body of Christ are to help the
world to be more like God
wants, they must focus on
being like God wants —
Living the Gospel
Praying the Rosary
Teaches us about the
lives of Jesus and Mary —
We are, as Our Lady of Fatima says,
to follow in the footsteps of
Jesus and Mary.
Jesus told Fr. Carter that the Sacred Heart
is to be the King and Center of
our hearts, all places of
our lives —
We are commissioned in baptism
to spread the Good News, in
our ways and in our example —
In praying the rosary and living
by the Gospel, our example if
married, religious or single is
that of following Jesus —
God calls us to a certain
state of life —
It is important we see it
as a calling and we are responding
to Him.
The world has the attitude
in many ways that we make
the decisions and do not have to
focus on God's Plan —
But God has a plan for
us — We must follow God's
Plan to be happy —
We should answer in love —
saying yes with a willing
response —
God CALLS
WE RESPOND
We do not hold back —
We let go of anger —
old wounds —
old rejections —
old memories —
old abandonments —
We answer the call —
We respond willingly —
We obey authority
We are like Mary who was
the perfect disciple
of the Lord —
She served Jesus
Luke 1: 46-55
And Mary said:
My soul proclaims
the greatness of the Lord
and my spirit rejoices
in God my Saviour;
because he has looked upon
the humiliation of his servant.
Yes, from now onwards
all generations will call me blessed,
for the Almighty
has done great things for me.
Holy is his name,
and his faithful love extends age after age
to those who fear him.
He has used the power of his arm,
he has routed the arrogant of heart.
He has pulled down princes
from their thrones
and raised high the lowly.
He has filled the starving with good things,
sent the rich away empty.
He has come to the help
of Israel his servant,
mindful of his faithful love
—according to the promise
he made to our ancestors—
of his mercy to Abraham
and to his descendants for ever.
Pope John Paul II devoted his
pontificate to Mary
Totus Tuus
Pope John Paul II
gave himself to Mary —
Shepherds of Christ
Priestly Newsletter
From 2000 - Issue 3
The Father's
Will For Us - Our Source Of Peace
- Pope John Paul II
instructs us: "The Church, as a reconciled
and reconciling community, cannot forget
that at the source of her gift and mission
of reconciliation is the initiative, full of
compassionate love and mercy, of that God
who is love (see 1 John 4:8) and who out of
love created human beings (see Wisdom
11:23-26; Genesis 1:27: Psalms 8:4-8)…He
created them so that they might live in
friendship with Him and in communion with
one another.
"God is
faithful to His eternal plan even when man,
under the impulse of the evil one (see
Wisdom 2:24) and carried away by his own
pride, abuses the freedom given to him in
order to love and generously seek what is
good, and (instead) refuses to obey his Lord
and Father. God is faithful even when man,
instead of responding with love to God’s
love, opposes Him and treats Him like a
rival, deluding himself and relying on his
own power, with the resulting break of
relationship with the One who created him.
In spite of this transgression on man’s
part, God remains faithful in love.
"It is
certainly true that the story of the Garden
of Eden makes us think about the tragic
consequences of rejecting the Father, which
becomes evident in man’s inner disorder and
in the breakdown of harmony between man and
woman, brother and brother (see Genesis 3:12
ff; 4:1-16). Also significant is the Gospel
parable of the two brothers (the parable of
the ‘prodigal son’; see Luke 15:11-32) who,
in different ways, distance themselves from
their father and cause a rift between them.
Refusal of God’s fatherly love and of His
loving gifts is always at the root of
humanity’s divisions.
"But we
know that God…like the father in the parable
(of the prodigal son), does not close His
heart to any of His children. He waits for
them, looks for them, goes to meet them at
the place where the refusal of communion
imprisons them in isolation and division. He
calls them to gather about His table in the
joy of the feast of forgiveness and
reconciliation.
"This
initiative on God’s part is made concrete
and manifest in the redemptive act of
Christ, which radiates through the world by
means of the ministry of the Church."
13
-
Pope Paul VI on the
rosary: "As a Gospel prayer, centered in the mystery of
the redemptive Incarnation, the Rosary is therefore a
prayer with a clearly Christological orientation—the
Jesus that each Hail Mary recalls is the same Jesus Whom
the succession of the mysteries proposes to us…By its
nature the recitation of the Rosary calls for a quiet
rhythm and a lingering pace, helping the individual to
meditate on the mysteries of the Lord’s life as seen
through the eyes of her who was closest to the Lord. In
this way the unfathomable riches of these mysteries are
unfolded."47
On May 12, 1982, Pope
John Paul II made a pilgrimage to Fatima. One of his
motives for his visit was to offer thanks for Mary’s
intercession in saving his life relative to the
assassination attempt a year earlier.
Some fifteen years
later in 1997, the Holy Father gave us the following
words regarding Fatima. Lynne Weil, a newspaper
reporter, gives this account: "Pope John Paul said the
series of Marian apparitions at Fatima, Portugal, rank
as one of the most significant events of this century.
"The string of
apparitions that ended 80 years ago was ‘one of the
greatest’ signs of the times, ‘also because it announces
in its message many of the signs that followed and it
invites (us) to follow their call’, the pope said in a
letter to Bishop Serafim de Sousa Ferreire Silva of
Leiria - Fatima, Portugal. The message, dated October 1,
was released at the Vatican October 14 (1997).
"Pope John Paul said
the event at Fatima ‘helps us to see the hand of God’
even in the 20th century, with its wars and other mass
tragedies. And it showed that despite having ‘removed
itself from God’, humanity was offered God’s protection,
the pontiff said.
"Pope John Paul
recalled that in Gospel accounts of Jesus’ death, he
invoked clemency on his captors even as he was being
crucified and entrusted humanity to the care of his
mother, Mary.
"The pope repeated the
exhortation stemming from the Marian apparitions at
Fatima that the faithful recite the rosary every day. He
asked pastors to recite the rosary, and to teach others
to recite it, daily. —CNS"
Relationship with Others
-
Growth in the
Christ-life gives us an increased awareness of our
relationships with others. That is to say, the true
Christian is keenly aware that, to a great degree, God
intends each of us to press on toward maturity in the
spiritual life through proper relationships with our
fellow human beings. Indeed, the Christian imperative
reminds us that we are to walk life’s path, not in
isolation, but hand in hand with our brothers and
sisters of the human family.
To authentically
relate to others, we must be aware of who they really
are. We must be able to penetrate beyond surface
appearances, which may or may not be appealing to us,
and contact others in their core existence. When we are
truly in touch with others at the core of their beings,
we are aware of their awesome dignity. We are conscious
that these persons are created and redeemed by God in
His overwhelming love for them. Fortified with this
proper awareness, we are then in a position to relate to
others as we should.
In order to be in
touch with the inner self of others, we must be aware of
or in touch with our own inner or true self. This
awareness, in turn, is also an awareness that our self
is in the image of God, that we have been divinized in
Christ, that we are oriented toward love of God and
neighbor. Here, then, we see the profound interaction
between the three awarenesses and loves: awareness and
love of God, self and neighbor.
As Christians,
consequently, we should have a maturing sense of how our
existence is, in varied ways, profoundly interlinked
with the existence of others. This reality of union with
others is not limited to those we directly meet but
includes all members of the human family.
In rarer moments of
heroic reflection, we perhaps have dreamed of
sensational ways through which we may be called to lay
down our lives for our neighbor. For most of us,
however, such opportunities will probably never occur,
and this is just as well. Our courage could well be far
less in a real situation than it is in the inflated
proportions of dreamlike musings. Most people perform
much better in the less heroic atmosphere of everyday
sameness. Yet each day, so ordinarily similar to both
the one which has preceded and the one which will
follow, offers constant opportunities for the laying
down of one’s life for others. If these daily
opportunities are less sensational than the more heroic
occasions, they are much more numerous and therefore
much more consistently present as possibilities for
serving others.
Dying daily for others
means many things. It means curbing those persistent,
selfish tendencies which, if left unchecked, gradually
narrow our vision so that we hardly think of anyone but
ourselves. Dying daily for others means working at being
kind and patient—seemingly little things, but immensely
important in maintaining a spirit of harmony in the
course of human affairs. Dying daily for others means
fidelity to our work, even though this fidelity must be
expressed amid temptations such as discouragement,
laziness, and disinterest. Dying daily for our neighbor
means these and many other things, some of which we all
share in common, some of which are peculiar to each
person’s uniqueness. One of these common elements is
this: dying for others in daily and varied fashion is an
expression of our present concern while at the same time
it increases our capacity for future love.
Jesus, of course, is
our great exemplar regarding the service of others:
But Jesus called them to him and said, ‘You know that
among the gentiles the rulers lord it over them, and
great men make their authority felt. Among you this is
not to happen. No; anyone who wants to become great
among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to
be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son
of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give
his life as a ransom for many. (Mt 20:25-28).
Purification
Growth in the spiritual
life entails an ongoing and progressive purification.
This purification enables us to grow in union with God
as it allows God to increasingly possess us through the
Christ-life of grace.
The process of
purification takes many forms. It comprises everything
which cleanses us more and more of the false self — the
self which operates outside of God’s will — and which
allows the true self, the Christ-like self, to
increasingly emerge.
One of the forms of
purification is what has traditionally been called
asceticism. Asceticism is that active self-purification
aimed at helping the divine image in us to be more
manifest and operative. Asceticism helps us to become
more like the persons God wants us to be.
The Christian must
experience an ongoing conversion away from the
non-authentic self to a greater Christ-likeness, to
greater development of the authentic self. Asceticism is
the graced control, the active self-purification, of
one’s total being.
Christian asceticism is
at the service of freedom, of life. In aiding us to be
more Christ-like, it helps us be more alive. Far from
confining our capacity to live and to enjoy life,
asceticism contributes to the ongoing process of our
being persons capable of deeper love, and, therefore,
capable of greater life. One who practices a reasonable
asceticism is not one who is less interested in love and
life. Such a person is rather one who is willing to bear
with the hardships involved in a reasonable, graced
control of one’s being with all its various dimensions —
intellect, will, memory, emotions, and so forth — so
that one may be more alive, more capable of authentic
love.
Humility
Humility is a very
important virtue given to us for the spiritual journey.
Humility is both the
realization of what we are as creatures of God and the
concrete implementation of this realization in our
Christian lives. Humility, therefore, is not an exercise
in self-depreciation; it is not telling yourself that
you are no good, that you really have nothing of any
significance to contribute to the service of God.
Humility is based on truth. It is compatible with the
recognition that God has given a person certain gifts,
even great gifts, of nature and grace. If we do not
recognize our God-given gifts, we do not thank God for
them as we should, nor properly develop these gifts
according to His will. God wants us not only to
recognize the good that is in us, but also to realize
the source of this goodness. Although we have a
responsibility to cooperate with His graces, God is the
One Who is chiefly responsible for what we are. If one
person has advanced to a level in the Christian life
that is beyond the level of another, it is ultimately
because God has given that person greater graces.
If humility is based on
truth and, consequently, allows us to properly recognize
our gifts, it also necessitates that we admit to the
evil within us, which is also part of the truth and must
be acted upon. Humility not only bids us to admit that
there is evil in us, but also tells us that, as
creatures of God, we should conform to His will and work
against this evil side of our persons. In summary,
humility allows us to properly evaluate both the good
and evil within ourselves.
Here is a quotation from
St. Paul which helps us to preserve, and grow in,
humility: Who made you so important? What have you
got that was not given to you? And if it was given to
you, why are you boasting as though it were your own?
(1 Cor 4:7).
And in the Letter of
James we read: Humble yourselves before the Lord
and he will lift you up. (Jm 4:10)
Living in the Present Moment
I suggest that one of
the most difficult acts of self-discipline in the
spiritual journey is to concentrate on the present
moment. We have a very strong tendency to often
disregard the importance of the present moment by
focusing in a wrong way on the past or in a wrong way on
the future. When we give in to this tendency we suffer a
significant spiritual loss. There are proper occasions
for thinking of the past and the future. For example, we
have to learn from the past and we have to prepare for
the future, but our great emphasis has to be upon the
present. There is a Latin axiom which says, age quod
agis, which means: do what you are doing,
concentrate on the present. And, of course, we are
familiar with the term in the history of spirituality:
the sacrament of the present moment. Growth in
self-discipline should include a greater determination
to get as much as we can out of the present moment.
People with a terminal illness have an opportunity, as
they prepare for death, for increased prayer,
contrition, love of God. For those who have this
opportunity of knowing with some certainty the time of
their death, I’m sure as they look back on their lives,
they are saddened by the times they did not use time and
opportunities for the service of the Lord properly, and
are overjoyed at those times in which they did use the
present opportunity properly. A great means we have of
living in the present properly is a greater focus upon
our Lord. For if I have that awareness of the fact I am
united with Jesus here and now, why should I be
concerned so much about the future or the past? Yes, a
great help in living in the present and deriving all the
good we can from it for ourselves and others is an ever
greater focus on Jesus, because the more I focus upon
Jesus and the more I live with Him in the present
moment, the more I am satisfied with the present moment.
And so let us resolve to grow in that self-discipline
which is required to really live in the present with the
fullness of our being as much as is possible, with the
help of God’s grace. To do so is extremely important for
proper growth in the spiritual life.
Now is the time. Now
is the time to live and to love. Now is the time to
become more united to Christ, to be more one with Him.
Now is not yesterday; now is not tomorrow; now is today,
and today is a gift from the Lord.
Surrender to God
God gives ultimate
meaning to our lives. God reveals to us how the laughter
and the tears, the work and the play, the pain and the
joy, all fit together. As we live in God, God gathers up
what would otherwise be the fragmented pieces of our
lives, and arranges them into harmonious unity. This
unity emanates from our living according to God’s plan,
a plan embodying a way of existence that leads to an
ever greater experience of the true, the good, and the
beautiful.
We can put obstacles in
the way of God’s transforming designs, of God’s plan for
us. We can at times say "no" to God’s initiative. We can
refuse to be open to God’s tender, loving touch. We can
engage in a process of self-enclosure. We can determine
to map out our own path to supposed happiness,
forgetting that plans for happiness which exclude God
are ultimately plans for experiencing frustration and
emptiness. Briefly, we can act in an obstinate fashion
regarding God’s offer of Self-communication.
At other times, it is not
so much stubbornness which leads us to say "no" to God;
it is fear. We realize that the closer we come to God,
the more God will ask of us, gently but firmly. We fear
the white heat of God’s love. Such episodes along the
spiritual journey are crucial. If we keep pulling back
from the intensity of God’s love, if we keep refusing
what this love wants to accomplish in us and through us,
then we will live on a rather superficial level.
We must strive to
overcome whatever attitude prevents us from increasingly
giving ourselves over to God. We must realize that
progress in the spiritual life is measured by the degree
to which we abandon ourselves to God. We must realize
that, if we hope to grow spiritually, we must
increasingly allow God to direct our lives.
Let us pray, then, for an
increase in the spirit of abandonment to God. As we live
more according to this attitude, we will experience in
greater measure the warmth and security of God’s love,
this God Who is the ground of our being, the goal of our
existence, the source of our happiness.
Heart of Christ, Heart of Mary
Pope John Paul II speaks
to us movingly concerning the Heart of Christ: "The
Heart of the Redeemer enlivens the whole Church and
draws men who have opened their hearts ‘to the
inscrutable wealth’ of this unique Heart....
"I desire in a special
way to join spiritually with all those who inspire
their human hearts from this Divine Heart. It is a
numerous family. Not a few congregations, associations
and communities live and develop in the Church, taking
their vital energy in a programmed way from the Heart of
Christ. This spiritual bond always leads to a great
reawakening of apostolic zeal. Adorers of the Divine
Heart become people with sensitive consciences. And when
it is given to them to have a relationship with the
Heart of our Lord and Master, the need also reawakens in
them to do reparation for the sins of the world, for the
indifference of so many hearts, for their negligence.
"How necessary these
ranks of vigilant hearts are in the Church, so that the
love of the Divine Heart shall not remain isolated and
without response! In these ranks, special mention
deserves to be made of all those who offer up their
sufferings as living victims in union with the Heart of
Christ pierced on the cross. Transformed in that way by
love, human suffering becomes a particular leaven of
Christ’s saving work in the Church…
"The Most Sacred Heart of
Jesus reminds us, above all, of those moments when this
Heart was ‘pierced by the lance,’ and, thereby, opened
in a visible manner to man and the world. By reciting
the litany and venerating the Divine Heart in general,
we learn the mystery of the Redemption in all its divine
and human profundity."
And the Pope also speaks
to us about the heart of Mary: "The Immaculate Heart of
Mary was open to the word, ‘Woman, there is your son.’
It went to meet spiritually the Heart of the Son opened
by the soldier’s lance. The heart of Mary was opened by
the same love for man and for the world with which
Christ loved man and the world, offering up himself on
the cross, even to that lance stroke from the soldier.
"Consecrating the world
to the Immaculate heart of Mary means approaching the
same Source of Life, through the Mother’s Intercession,
that life which flowed forth from Golgatha, the source
which gushes out ceaselessly with redemption and grace.
Reparation for the sins of the world is continually
being accomplished in it. It is ceaselessly the font of
new life and holiness.
"Consecrating the world
to the Immaculate Heart of the Mother means returning
under the Cross of the Son. More: it means consecration
of this world to the pierced Heart of the Savior, by
bringing the world back to the very source of its
Redemption. Redemption is always greater than man’s sin
and ‘the sin of the world.’ The power of Redemption
infinitely surpasses the whole range of evil in man and
in the world.
"The Heart of the Mother
is aware of it, more than anyone in the whole cosmos,
visible and invisible. This is why she calls. She does
not call only to conversion; she also calls upon us to
let ourselves be helped by her, the Mother, to return to
the source of the Redemption."54
NOTES:
13. Pope John Paul
II, as in Celebrate 2000!, Servant
Publications, pp. 140-141.
47. Pope Paul VI, Devotion to the
Blessed Virgin Mary (Marialis Cultus), United
States Catholic Conference, Nos. 46-47.
54. Pope John Paul II. Prayers and
Devotions, edited by Bishop Peter Canuis
Johannes Van Lierde, Viking, pp. 449-451.
end of excerpts from Priestly Newsletter
Book III
July 31, 1994
Words of Jesus to Members
of
Shepherds of Christ Associates:
"My beloved
priest-companion, I intend to use the
priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ,
and the movement, Shepherds of Christ
Associates, in a powerful way for the
renewal of My Church and the world.
"I will use the newsletter
and the chapters of Shepherds of Christ
Associates as a powerful instrument for
spreading devotion to My Heart and My
Mother's Heart.
"I am calling many to become
members of Shepherds of Christ Associates.
To all of them I will give great blessings.
I will use them as instruments to help bring
about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart
and the reign of My Sacred Heart. I will
give great graces to the members of
Shepherds of Christ Associates. I will
call them to be deeply united to My Heart
and to Mary's Heart as I lead them ever
closer to My Father in the Holy Spirit."
- Message
from Jesus to Father Edward J. Carter, S.J.,
Founder, as given on July 31, 1994,
feast
of Saint Ignatius Loyola, Founder of the
Society of Jesus (The Jesuits)
