Daily Writing
| Shepherds of Christ Daily Writing |
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August 19, 2010
August 20th Holy Spirit Novena
Scripture selection is Day 1 Period I.The Novena Rosary Mysteries
for August 20th are Sorrowful.
Rita will be in China
August 19 for 6:20 prayers
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August 19, 2010
I remember a little story
Jesus gave me in 1992 — 18 years ago
He said there was a big brother
and a little brother and the little
brother was caught cheating at a
very nice school.
The principal, being a just
principal, said the little boy had
to leave for cheating.
The big brother went to the
principal and he pleaded — please
do not dismiss my little brother —
please I will pay for his offense —
I will be dismissed in place of
my little brother — He pleaded
with the principal — if my little
brother is sorry and sins no
more can I stand in for him —
and be the one let go —
God is such a generous God —
He did not have to create us —
nor did Jesus have to die and rise
for us — Adam and Eve sinned —
But God who loves us wants
us forever in heaven with Him —
Jesus paid the price for our
sins — like the big brother
that paid the price for his
little brother's cheating —
We are sinners
And God is so good to us —
when we sin — He tells us to
say we are sorry and acknowledge
how we have offended Him —
He tells us we are here to have
relationship with Him and others —
Like in the Our Father.
Jesus said we are to learn to say
we are sorry for our sins
when we wronged our brother —
"forgive us our trespasses as we
forgive those who trespass
against us." —
I remember a story a priest
told once — There were parents and
a drunk driver killed their daughter —
the parents were bitter and wouldn't
forgive — this is a slow dying to
one's heart to not forgive —
In the Our Father — Jesus gives
us the prescription we must live
by
"forgive us our trespasses —
as we forgive those who trespass
against us"
Then Jesus said
"deliver us from evil".
Bishop Sheen says that means
deliver us from the evil one.
We see that satan tempted Adam
and Eve and we the children of
Adam and Eve suffered —
Jesus came and paid for
our sins —
So we see this grave offense
of Adam and Eve was paid
for by the New Adam.
The offense was by humanity in
disobedience to God and yet Christ
paid for our sins —
We are to tell God we are
sorry not only for our sins, but
for the sins of the human race —
God gives us priests, and
the Church and the Mass to
tell Him how sorry we are for
our sins and the sins of man —
Jesus is generous!!
God gives us the Holy Sacrifice
of the Mass — the sacrifice of
Calvary, sacramentally made
present —
Jesus, the Divine God had
to come to earth to pay for
this grave sin of Adam and Eve —
The sin was a grave offense
against Divinity — Jesus, the
Divine God, had to pay for the
sin —
We see the message of the
angel 1916
Excerpt from The Spirituality of Fatima
by Fr. Edward Carter, S.J.
Before receiving the six apparitions of Our Lady, May through October of 1917, the three Fatima visionaries were visited by an angel on three different occasions during the preceding year. He appeared to them in the spring, summer, and fall. Lucia (now Sr. Lucia) describes the springtime apparition of the angel:
(3)"My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love You! I ask pardon of You for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You."
Then, rising he said: "Pray thus. The Hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive to the voice of your supplications."
His words engraved themselves so deeply on our minds that we could never forget them
During the summer of 1916, the angel again appeared to the three visionaries. He said to them:
(4)Pray! Pray a great deal. The Hearts of Jesus and Mary have merciful designs on you. Offer prayers and sacrifices continually to the Most High. Make everything you do a sacrifice, and offer it as an act of reparation for the sins by which God is offended, and as a petition for the conversion of sinners. Bring peace to our country in this way.... I am the Guardian Angel of Portugal Accept and bear with submission all the sufferings the Lord will send you.
In the fall of the same year, the angel visited the visionaries a final time:
(5)The angel came...bearing a golden chalice in one hand and a Host above it in the other. The amazed children noticed that drops of blood were falling from the Host into the chalice. Presently, the angel left both suspended in mid-air and prostrated himself on the ground, saying this beautiful prayer: "Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore You profoundly. I offer You the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifference by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and [the intercession of] the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners."
Saying we are sorry —
We see how the Pharaoh wouldn't
bend against Moses —
He would not bend —
the Pharaoh was confronted with
all the Plagues
The Pharaoh's power was his god —
Even after losing his child —
He suffered then the dividing
of the Red Sea and
the chariots of his men and
charioteers were consumed.
My mission, Fr. Carter's mission, is to
deliver the message again of Fatima,
reparation —
What we do at Mass
praise God
thank God
petition God
adore God
help make reparation for sin —
We see relationship between God
and His people in the old testament
God's rule given to Moses (the 10 Commandments)
We see some made a pagan god —
the golden calf —
The Mosaic covenant prefigured
the covenant which would be
established in Christ —
Yahweh had given Himself to the
Jews in a special way —
He was their God and they were His
people.
This life relationship was
highly imperfect, however, it
compared to that instituted by Christ —
The covenant life between God and
man established by the Incarnate Word
is of the most intimate nature —
We see this if we consider
the new covenant as being contained
in a perfect way in Christ Himself.
He is radically the new covenant.
Covenant, remember has various
dimensions of love —
Out of love God shares His life with
men and man in community responds
in love by giving himself to God
and relating in love with his
neighbor.
In Christ we perceive these
relationships achieved in the most
perfect manner possible.
First of all, Christ in His
humanity receives the divinity's
gift of self in the highest degree —
to such a high degree, in fact,
that we have the hypostatic union
as a result. In other words, the
human nature of Christ is
recipient of God's self-communication
in such a perfect manner that it
does not exist by reason of its own
personal act of existence, but
rather by the divine existence of
the Word, the second person
of the Trinity —
Christ as man — in the name of
all men, for all men — perfectly
receives God's communication of
Himself in grace. This is
the first movement of the covenant
life, downward from God to
man. In the second movement of
covenant, man's response, we
again see Christ as central.
As man, Christ makes the perfect
response to God for all men.
This response of Christ includes
both His love for His Father and
His relationship in love with men.
His entire life was itself this
perfect response. His life,
submerged in a covenant, loving
conformity to His Father's will,
was and is the perfect incarnate
response which man is called
upon to make to his covenant God.
The response which Christ
made was centered in His
death and Resurrection. These
two events contained the whole of
Christ's life and are intimately united.
Everything which Christ did
previous to Calvary was a
preparation for Calvary and
consequently shared its redemptive
value. The Resurrection was in one
way or another the completion of
the work of Calvary. Since Christ's
perfect response to the Father
culminated in His death-resurrection,
it is evident that Christ's life
involved a transition just as
did the life of the Jewish people
in the old covenant.
This transition of the Israelites
was manifested in the exodus from
Egypt. In fact, in Christ's transition
in death-resurrection was fulfillment
of the Jewish exodus, and just as
the transition of the Jews marked
a passage from a lower to a
higher type of existence so did
Christ's transition or passover
have this characteristic.
What was Christ's transition?
Before Christ experienced death, He
was limited by the sinfulness of the
world into which He had immersed
Himself in His Incarnation. He
loved men, and He loved to be in their midst,
and in the midst of their world. But He
did suffer from the sinfulness
of this world. Sinless though He Himself
was, He was in certain ways affected
and limited by sin. Indeed, sin
destroyed Christ in His mortal existence.
This shows us the degree in which
Christ was limited by or "hemmed in"
by this world's sinfulness. But through
the passageway of His death, Christ
passed beyond the limitations He had
experienced in His mortal life. He
conquered sin, and He rose into
a more perfect type of life, that
of Resurrection. In such a life
He could no longer suffer. He could
no longer be "limited" by the sinful
aspect of the world.
There is another similarity
between this Jewish transition or
exodus and the transition involved
in Christ's death-resurrection. We saw
the part that sacrificial blood
contributed to the passover or transition
of the Jewish people in two instances.
The blood of the paschal lamb
freed the Jewish homes from
the deathblow of Yahweh immediately
before their departure from Egypt,
and ultimately it was sacrificial
blood which sealed the Mosaic
covenant upon Mount Sinai.
Sacrificial blood was also essential
in Christ's passover or transition.
It was through the shedding of His
blood that He passed through death
to Resurrection. It was thus His blood
which made the transition possible
and which sealed the new covenant.
This new covenant, supplanting the
old, in the new life relationship
between God and His People, and
the People themselves. Christ,
in achieving new life through
death-resurrection, gained
it not only for Himself but for
all His members.
The Christian, then, shares in
the life of Christ's Resurrection.
But if he participates in the Resurrection
of Christ he must also share in Christ's death,
since death is the way to Resurrection.
Romans 6: 2-4
Out of the question! We have died to sin; how could we go on living in it? You cannot have forgotten that all of us, when we were baptised into Christ Jesus, were baptised into his death. So by our baptism into his death we were buried with him, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father’s glorious power, we too should begin living a new life
Through baptism therefore the Christian
is incorporated into Christ's death-resurrection.
Baptism pledges the Christian to die to sin
and ideally to all that is not in according
with God's will, even though sin is not
involved. Baptism also pledges the Christian
to live vitally his new life in Christ, his
share in Christ's Resurrection. As he is
incorporated into Christ through baptism,
the Christian is also made a member of the
Church.
Awareness of this simultaneous
incorporation into both Christ and the Church
emphasizes for the Christian the fact that his
life of holiness in Christ is to be lived out
in "community". In other words, the Christian
lives in Christ within the People of God,
within the Church. This stress of contemporary
spirituality upon the communal aspect
of Christian holiness is firmly rooted in
God's revealed truth. Throughout salvation
history God has lovingly communicated
Himself to man within the covenant
framework with its communal dimension.
He has also asked for man's response
in love within this same covenant
framework.
The Church in union with Christ is the
new covenant. Since Christ is the Head of
His Church, it follows that the Church
with her members must live out the
covenant life according to the structure which
Christ gives her. The Church has no life, no
pattern of life, except that which Christ gives her.
This basic pattern or structure is death-resurrection.
Christ established the Church by His paschal
mystery. His death-resurrection. In so
establishing the Church by such an event,
Christ also determined how the Church
essentially lives out her covenant life
down through the ages — through death
and Resurrection.
Excerpt from Response in Christ,
by Father Edward J. Carter, S.J.
ONE The Concept of
the Christian Life
The Church, then, continues Christ's death-resurrection. She consequently continues the entire mystery of Christ, since Christ's entire life is contained in His passover event.2 We see therefore why the Church can be referred to as the continuation of the redemptive Incarnation. Indeed the Church is Christ, the mystical Christ. Because she is the earthly continuation of Christ, the Church has everything within her structure needed to be the source of salvation and sanctification for men of all times. For instance, in reference to the presently much-discussed theme of the Church's relevancy to modern man, we know from theological reflection that the Church has this relevancy radically structured within her very existence. This is simply an application of the reality that the Church actually does prolong the mission of the Incarnate Word; since Christ was relevant to His age, the Church has the capacity to be relevant to all ages.
What do we mean by saying Christ was relevant to His age? Christ revealed the Father and communicated the Father's life to men by adapting Himself in a fundamental way to the life situation which existed at that particular time in Jewish history. Since Christ through His humanity adapted His message to the people of His times, so the Church must use her innate capacity to be relevant for the men of this or that age. She must in a sense be constantly reincarnating Christ, for she is the only visible Christ which this world now has. This reincarnation largely means being relevant.
As the Church is the continuation of Christ, so is the life of the Christian. Just as the Church centers her life in Christ's death-resurrection, so does the life of the Christian. Both Church and Christian then are continually dying with Christ, dying to all which is not of Christ. At the same time Church and Christian are meant to rise more and more with Christ, assimilating ever more perfectly His life through grace. This life of grace is the Church's and the Christian's share in Christ's Resurrection. It is true that this life of grace will have its completion only in eternity. Nevertheless, it does have very real beginnings here in this life.
It is therefore apparent why the Church's life is directed to the liturgy, especially the eucharistic liturgy.3 For it is within the liturgy culminating in the Mass that the death-resurrection of Christ is constantly renewed in a special manner. In the Mass the People of God have the constant opportunity to assimilate the death-resurrection of Christ more and more into their lives. As they do so collectively and individually, the People of God are continuing Christ's life and mission upon earth.
The Christian life, then, is a response to God's gift of Himself. God in love gives us a life of grace, a share in His own divine life. We respond in love by giving ourselves to God and our fellowman, by dynamically living out this life of grace, this Christ-life, in the pattern of death-resurrection. This life of grace is meant to be exercised constantly, as the Christian loves God and man, in Christ, according to the will of the Father. Also, to reiterate, God intends that our life in Christ be lived out in the community of the Church. The Christian life can never solely be an individual's response to his God.
As the Christian lives out this life of grace in community, he is offering Christ a new humanity through which He can reincarnate Himself. It is not only through the Church as a whole that Christ reincarnates Himself, but also, ideally, through each Christian within the Church. Each Christian has a special responsibility and privilege. No one else can offer Christ the unique opportunity of reincarnating Himself as can this or that particular Christian. For each Christian is a unique, created imitation of God never again to be repeated. Each Christian has a unique humanity to offer Christ. To the extent that he fails to do so, to that degree Christ has lost this opportunity to reincarnate Himself through this humanity.
Consequently, the Christian life can be conceived as the Christian permitting Christ to live more and more through his total person. Christian holiness is continual growth in the assimilation of that great thought of St. Paul, ". . . I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me." (Ga 2:20).
There are many ways in which the Christian can permit Christ to live in and through him. Love of the Father and love of all men, of course, are the two great themes which will channel this reincarnation of Christ. These were the great driving forces in Christ's life, and consequently they will be so in the life of the Christian.
If the Christian is to grow in projecting Christ through his Christian personality, he must be aware of the many various ways in which Christ loved His Father, and His will. He must be aware of the various ways in which the Father's will comes to him, and thus he will realize the multiple ways in which he is to love the Father in embracing that will. The Father's will can come to him in joy and happiness or in pain and sorrow; in work or in relaxation; in a life of great obscurity as well as in a life which commands public attention; in frustration or in success. These and many other channels of the Father's will offer the Christian the opportunity to continue this witness of Christ's life: no matter how easy or difficult, the Father's will must be lovingly embraced in all things. This is how Christ radically saved the world. This is how the Church, living according to the same principle, cooperates with Christ in furthering His redemptive work.
Christ's great love and concern for men must also be continually reincarnated through the Christian. Contemporary spirituality makes considerable use of personalism.4 One basic way we can apply personalism to our present theme is as follows: God revealed His love to men in a concrete way, through a Person possessing a tangible, visible human nature. Although this tangible, historical Christ is no longer with us upon earth, the basic plan of the Father continues. To a considerable degree He still continues to give Himself, His love, through tangible, visible human natures. It is through the Christian united with Christ that God continues in many ways to make His love tangible, visible – and human – to mankind.
Through these brief indications we can realize the various and many possibilities through which Christ lives again in the Christian. As the Christian in this manner projects Christ to his contemporary world he relives the total mystery of Christ. All the mysteries of Christ's life will be apparent somehow in such a Christian existence. But as the Christian puts on Christ more and more, death-resurrection will be especially apparent. For the Christian will be more and more going out of a self-centered existence, dying to that which is not really life at all, and increasingly passing over into a greater existence, into the life of Christ Himself. In this manner the Christian continues that transition process of passing from a lower to a higher mode of existence. We have seen this transition process to be at the heart of salvation history. We saw it in the exodus-event of the Jewish people. We saw it in the death-resurrection of Christ. We continue to find it in the life of the Christian as he prolongs the paschal mystery of Christ.
Yes, we live a new life in Christ. Christ, therefore, wants to share everything relating to our existence – sin alone excepted. When He united us to Himself in assuming human nature, He united to Himself all our authentic concerns, values and interest. He is truly a man, and He wants to share with us all our truly human experiences. He and His grace want to touch these experiences. Nothing which is really human is alien to our life in Christ.
We enjoy the freshness of a bright clear day, the stillness of the night, the innocence of a little child, the companionship of a friend, the relaxation or stimulation of a good movie. Christ wants to share these joys with us. In our daily work there is a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment and joy – there also can be pain, disappointment and misunderstanding. Christ wants to be there in the midst of all.
A strong, young American, the pride of his father, and full of promise, goes off to war. One day he fights his last and is no more. His father is in anguish and sorrow, and we sympathize. We observe the hatred and suspicion which exists between many white men and many black men, and our hearts grieve. Science achieves a great new discovery, and we are glad for this progress of the human race. A young man and woman are deeply in love, they marry, and their joy is great. And we rejoice with them. All these human experiences Christ wants to share with us, for He, too, is a man. The Christian actually is in Christ, and we must be bold enough to apply this reality to all the authentic areas of our existence. Christ wants it no other way.
The chief source of strength for the Christian as he lives in Christ is the liturgy, for this is the heart of the Church's life. Yet participation in the liturgy alone will not make certain the Christian's progress in holiness.5 The Christian must be constantly living out his previous participation. His life in Christ necessitates various types of activity which complement his liturgical life.
One such form of Christian endeavor is Christian asceticism. There are various reasons for asceticism in any age. Because of original and personal sin, the Christian has within himself many tendencies which are not in accord with Christ. Whether these involve the exterior senses or the interior senses and spiritual faculties, these tendencies must be controlled; otherwise, the Christ-life, the life of grace, cannot dominate the total person of the Christian as it is meant to do. Christian asceticism therefore embraces the traditional concept of mortification, namely a constant, reasonable control of the total person. Asceticism also includes the idea of organized effort in the spiritual life; it includes moreover the idea of renunciation and penance. These are traditional meanings of the term.
Yet Christian asceticism as contemporary thought conceives it goes further than mere control, organized effort, renunciation and penance. It embraces the reality of selflessness, a gradual going out from self-centeredness. As the Christian grows, his existential frame of reference becomes more and more Christ and others. To live means increasingly to love Christ and men. Paradoxically, the more the Christian goes out of himself, the more he authentically becomes himself, the more he becomes a true person. Viewed in terms of death-resurrection, Christian asceticism is seen to be more concerned with the death aspect of the paschal mystery. However, Resurrection is also present in a proper asceticism, for, among other reasons, Christian asceticism carries with it its own joy – a share in Resurrection joy.
Asceticism and other expressions of the Christian life involve the exercise of the infused virtues, both theological and moral. These virtues can be conceived of in terms of supernatural faculties which give expression to our life of grace in Christ. These virtues, the chief of which are faith, hope and love, give the Christian all the capacities he needs to form meaningful, graced relationships with God, man and the rest of creation. (The horizontal dimension outward to man and creation is receiving special attention in the contemporary treatment of faith, hope and love.) Although the death aspect of the paschal mystery is present in the exercise of the virtues, we more easily identify these virtues with the Resurrection aspect of the paschal mystery. For the life of grace, with the infused virtues playing a dominant role, is our share in Christ's Resurrection.
The life of the Christian must also involve prayer. Why? Our life of grace is a created participation in Trinitarian life. What is life in God? It is essentially a life of knowledge and love. The life of the Trinity consists in the knowledge and love which exists between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Then it is from the Trinity that the knowledge and love of God also goes out to creation.
Our life of grace is structured in the same manner. In union with Christ it essentially consists in knowing and loving God and in knowing and loving His creation, both on a supernatural level. Because this life of grace is centered in God, prayer is an absolute necessity. For prayer essentially is an interpersonal dialogue between God and the Christian. Without prayer the knowing and loving of God will never be what it should and neither will be the knowledge and love of God's creation. For one cannot envision, one cannot love man and the rest of creation without the intimate contact with God which prayer gives. This is because it is God's vision and God's love of His creation which the Christian shares in the life of grace.
The Christian, however, must not only pray. He must also externalize his life of knowledge and love in various ways. Today's spirituality with its incarnational trend stresses this fact.7 The Christian's life of Resurrection in Christ must to a considerable extent express itself in the daily world which surrounds him. This Christ-life must be expressed in the Christian's concern for the problems of the inner city and in his concern for a more just distribution of the world's wealth. It must manifest itself in the Christian's solicitude for the diseased and the poverty-stricken the world over. This life we have in Christ must incarnate itself in a concern over the spread of pornographic literature and other forms of godlessness. It must manifest itself as solicitous regarding the hatred which often exists between black man and white man. Our Christ-life must also express itself by our showing a tangible, warm love and interest toward those with whom we come into direct encounter.
This list of love and concern on the part of the Christian could be extended on and on. To what extent the Christian will manifest his concern in any of these areas will depend upon his vocation, the graces he receives and other circumstances. Our main point is this: the Christian through his life of grace in Christ has been called to further the creative and redemptive effort of God. He must, therefore, intimately involve himself in the affairs of this world. (Even the cloistered contemplative is called to involvement through such means as prayer.)
We have briefly indicated that the life of the Christian involves liturgy, asceticism, the exercise of the infused virtues, prayer and action. Rounding out such a list are other traditional aids to holiness, for example, spiritual reading, examination of conscience, spiritual direction. All of these are means of expressing our life of grace in Christ. They are also ways of growing in that life. All these should be seen in their connection with the Christian's participation in the passover mystery of Christ, His death-resurrection.
This first chapter has purposely centered the reality of the Christian life around the death-resurrection of Christ. In the remaining chapters we will expand upon the essentials we have treated briefly in these first pages. As we progress, we hope to show in detail that Christian holiness is life in Christ, for our life in Christ contains everything – our love of God, our love of men, our love of all creation. We hope to portray the Christian as one who believes from the depths of his being that to live is Christ.
_______
1. Cf. Bernard Cooke, "Synoptic Presentation of the Eucharist as Covenant Sacrifice" in Theological Studies, Vol. 21, (1960), p. 36.
2. The Mystery of Christ is essentially one reality. Any of the individual mysteries implicitly contains the others. For a treatment of this, cf. L. Bouyer, Liturgical Piety (Notre Dame, Indiana: Notre Dame University Press, 1955), pp. 189-190.
3. Cf. Second Vatican Council, The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, No. 10.
4. Cf., for example, E. McMahon and P. Campbell, Becoming a Person in the Whole Christ (New York: Sheed & Ward, 1967).
5. Cf. Second Vatican Council, The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, No. 12.
6. Cf. Karl Rahner, Spiritual Exercises (New York: Herder & Herder, 1965) pp. 66-79.
7. Cf., for example, Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, No. 34.end of Excerpt from Response in Christ
Fr. Carter had a dream.
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)
Prayer for Union with Jesus
Come to me, Lord, and possess my soul. Come into my heart and permeate my soul. Help me to sit in silence with You and let You work in my heart.
I am Yours to possess. I am Yours to use. I want to be selfless and only exist in You. Help me to spoon out all that is me and be an empty vessel ready to be filled by You. Help me to die to myself and live only for You. Use me as You will. Let me never draw my attention back to myself. I only want to operate as You do, dwelling within me.
I am Yours, Lord. I want to have my life in You. I want to do the will of the Father. Give me the strength to put aside the world and let You operate my very being. Help me to act as You desire. Strengthen me against the distractions of the devil to take me from Your work.
When I worry, I have taken my focus off of You and placed it on myself. Help me not to give in to the promptings of others to change what in my heart You are making very clear to me. I worship You, I adore You and I love You. Come and dwell in me now.
-God's Blue Book, January 17, 1994
A Prayer before the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
Let me be a holy sacrifice and unite with God in the sacrament of His greatest love.
I want to be one in Him in this act of love, where He gives Himself to me and I give myself as a sacrifice to Him. Let me be a holy sacrifice as I become one with Him in this my act of greatest love to Him.
Let me unite with Him more, that I may more deeply love Him. May I help make reparation to His adorable Heart and the heart of His Mother, Mary. With greatest love, I offer myself to You and pray that You will accept my sacrifice of greatest love. I give myself to You and unite in Your gift of Yourself to me. Come and possess my soul.
Cleanse me, strengthen me, heal me. Dear Holy Spirit act in the heart of Mary to make me more and more like Jesus.
Father, I offer this my sacrifice, myself united to Jesus in the Holy Spirit to You. Help me to love God more deeply in this act of my greatest love.
Give me the grace to grow in my knowledge, love and service of You and for this to be my greatest participation in the Mass. Give me the greatest graces to love You so deeply in this Mass, You who are so worthy of my love.
-God's Blue Book, December 27, 1995
Excerpt from the Mass Book
T
HERE IS A MAN ON THE CROSSGod wants union with us. He wants fire. Many try to love God with a cold heart. They tell Him words that they think they should say that are loving.
When one loves, they do not need to be prompted to say words. From the depth of their being they cry out their words of love. It is a cry from within, from the fire within their chest, behind the words. The words are burning in their chest and must be released because of the fire behind them.
We are as blind men. We do not see the great gifts that God gives to us. It is as if we stand by the shore of the sea and throw little words at Jesus. We must not be afraid to jump into the water and be completely immersed in His love. He was consumed with such love for us. He gave Himself to His death on the cross.
There is a man on a cross and he tells us so many things. He does not have to speak. When we study Him on the cross, He speaks to us with His pierced hands, His head covered with blood, His body withered and beaten. He speaks to us of His undying love.
Oh, beloved Savior, I am blind. I am selfish. I do not see the great reservoir of love that you give to Me. I see the man dying on the cross. How do I see Him? Do I see a figure and think, oh, is it a pretty cross, would it look good in my living room? Do I see the cross and think, oh, I guess I should have one in my house, others will think I am holy then? Holy people do have a cross in their homes.
Do I see the body of a man, a live man? Do I see His labored breath? Do I see His chest move as His Heart beats within? Do I see the real skin of a man? Do I see the real blood He shed? Do I see the light that silhouettes His withered body? Do I see the Light of the World? Do I see the tender skin of an infant laid on bare wood in the manager and then the torn, lacerated, bloodied skin of this man?
This is love! There is a man on the cross. There is a child born to us today. He is the Light of the World. His light is shining in the darkness, but people do not see. They see the wood, but they view it for the beauty it will create in their newly decorated living rooms.
The cross is not a thing of the past, the cross is with us today. We carry it on our backs as He showed us we would, but we try to take it off and throw it away.
It is in the cross there is the resurrection. It is by meditating on the crucifix, we see His undying love. We must open up our eyes and see. Pray for vision to see clearly the man Who gave Himself for love of us, Our Divine Lord.
And how do we return His love?
Love is spontaneous, love is fire in our hearts, love is alive and emitted with force. God is love.
Do we realize that His last thoughts on the cross were for us. In this agony, as He hung on the cross, He was consumed with burning love for us. When He was scourged at the pillar, He was comforted by our acts of love that we give to Him today. Our burning love for Him was sweetness to His most Sacred Heart in the moments of His bitter Passion.
Love gives and wants to give its all. A person in love does not need to be prompted and told to love. Love wants to give.
Love is given spontaneously, it is not controlled. Love is tenderness pouring forth from the heart. Love is not concerned with commitment, love by itself is committed. It pours forth from the mouth of the lover because of the fire burning deep inside.
Let us study the battered body of Christ on the cross. As I study His pierced hands and feet, His head crowned with thorns, the blood pouring forth from His Heart, as I view the lacerations covering His body, I feel His word well up in my heart. He speaks to me in the depth of my soul and I hear Him say, "I love you. I love you. I love you, to My death on the cross."
He gives, He gives, He gives to us constantly. He gives and how is He treated by us? We take and we take and we take and we don't even say thanks. Thanks for our breath, our heartbeat, the beautiful sky, the sunlit day, the moon at night, the beautiful eyes of our friends. Oh, how many things He gives to us and how ungrateful we are!
How is your day? Is your glass half-empty or half-full?
How often my glass is half empty, as I am reminded by my spiritual director, Fr. Carter. How often I do not thank Our Divine Lord for His gifts!
When I am filled with love, I see more clearly. The secret is to know God's love. We must pray for the grace to know His love more and for the grace to love Him more.
There is a man on the cross. Do we see His undying love for us? He speaks no words. He shows us the crucifix. The words are alive in our hearts.
The Father created us to love and to be loved. God is love. He wants union with us. He gives Himself to us. This is love. There is union in proportion to how I give myself to Him.
Jesus gives and gives and gives and we treat Him "nonchalantly". He gives us love, but we must give ourselves to Him to have union with Him. He wants us to be one with Him.
We must relish the great gifts He gives to us - the greatest gift being the gift of Himself. We should anticipate the great gift of receiving Him in the Holy Eucharist with such eagerness in our hearts. The words I feel in my heart are expressed in the song, "I Love You, Jesus":
Oh Burning Heart, Oh Love divine, how sweet You are to me. I see the host, I know You're here to love and care for me. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee. I cannot say. There are not words to say what my heart feels. I love You so, I scarce can breathe when You come into me. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee. Your tender Heart, Oh how it beats for love of each this day. I want to give You all my love, surrender totally. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee.
When we awake at night, we must think of Him and how we will receive Him the next day. We long to go to Communion to receive Him. We love Jesus in the Eucharist so much. A King comes to us. He enters our body and unites with our soul. He is the King of the kingdom of heaven…He is our Lover, He is the Almighty God, a Divine Person, and He comes to us. He wants us to come to Him with such longing. He wants us to think of Him all day. He wants us to long for Him.
Ps. 63:1-8:
God, you are my God, I pine for you;
my heart thirsts for you,
my body longs for you,
as a land parched, dreary and waterless.
Thus I have gazed on you in the sanctuary,
seeing your power and your glory.
Better your faithful love than life itself;
my lips will praise you.
Thus I will bless you all my life,
in your name lift up my hands.
All my longings fulfilled as with fat and rich foods,
a song of joy on my lips and praise in my mouth.
On my bed when I think of you,
I muse on you in the watches of the night,
for you have always been my help;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice;
my heart clings to you,
your right hand supports me.The priest says in the Mass at the Offertory, "By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the Divinity of Christ, Who humbled himself to share in our humanity." He gives Himself to us. He shares His Divinity with us. We are human creatures and He shares Himself with us. My heart burns when the priest puts the drop of water in the wine. This is, indeed, a great mystery that God remains with us today, truly present in His Divinity and humanity in the Holy Eucharist, that He gives Himself to us in Communion, and that He waits for us to come to the tabernacle and be with Him. He wants to outpour His divine love and His divine life to us.
We should swoon for our Lover the Almighty, Divine God, yet we go to Him with such cold hearts. He wants our burning love.
Oh Burning Heart, Oh Love divine, how sweet You are to me. I see the Host, I know You're here to love and care for me. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee. I cannot say. There are not words to say what my heart feels. I love You so, I scarce can breathe when You come into me. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee. Your tender Heart, Oh how it beats for love of each this day. I want to give You all my love, surrender totally. I know Your love a little now, so dear You are to me. Come give me life, abundant life, I thirst to be with Thee.
end of December 19, 1996 message
Hebrews Chapter 3
II: JESUS THE FAITHFUL AND MERCIFUL HIGH PRIEST
Christ higher than Moses
That is why all you who are holy brothers and share the same heavenly call should turn your minds to Jesus, the apostle and the high priest of our profession of faith. He was trustworthy to the one who appointed him, just like Moses, who remained trustworthy in all his household; but he deserves a greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house is more honoured than the house itself. Every house is built by someone, of course; but God built everything that exists. It is true that Moses was trustworthy in the household of God, as a servant is, acting as witness to the things which were yet to be revealed, but Christ is trustworthy as a son is, over his household. And we are his household, as long as we fearlessly maintain the hope in which we glory.How to reach God’s land of rest
That is why, as the Holy Spirit says:
If only you would listen to him today!
Do not harden your hearts,
as at the rebellion,
as at the time of testing in the desert,
when your ancestors challenged me,
and put me to the test,
and saw what I could do
for forty years.That was why
that generation sickened me
and I said, ‘Always fickle hearts,
that cannot grasp my ways!’
And then in my anger I swore
that they would never enter my place of rest.Take care, brothers, that none of you ever has a wicked heart, so unbelieving as to turn away from the living God. Every day, as long as this today lasts, keep encouraging one another so that none of you is hardened by the lure of sin, because we have been granted a share with Christ only if we keep the grasp of our first confidence firm to the end. In this saying: If only you would listen to him today; do not harden your hearts, as at the Rebellion, who was it who listened and then rebelled? Surely all those whom Moses led out of Egypt. And with whom was he angry for forty years? Surely with those who sinned and whose dead bodies fell in the desert. To whom did he swear they would never enter his place of rest? Surely those who would not believe. So we see that it was their refusal to believe which prevented them from entering.
Excerpts from Through the Year with Fulton Sheen
30 Our virgin birth
I cannot see why a Christian should be in the least bit troubled about the virgin birth, because there's a virgin birth in us all. Everyone who becomes a Christian has Christ in him. Christ is born... in everyone by baptism. There is first of all the renewal crisis in the intellect so that, as Paul says, we "put on the mind of Christ." He is in the will, as grace and power. And he is in our body, because our body becomes the temple of God. The convert (it's easy to understand in a convert because one can always distinguish the before and after state) can often say: "Oh, yes, at this precise date I heard the word of God. And the word was born in me so that I have his truth and his grace, and he's living inside of my body." There is conception by perception, conception by the hearing of the word of God. 4
August 13, 2010 Third Message for retreat
The snow
The fire place
Love
God is good —
God wants love.
God is love.
God has given us the Shepherds of Christ
Movement to spread love
and peace —
Sing; Come to the Fields
Like a Sunflower
Suffering makes God's gifts
look brighter.
Florida —
God the Father gave us Clearwater!!
Florida like a boat in the
water
pulling the US
the Lady is the Pillar of
Don Bosco's vision
In Don Bosco's vision we see 2 pillars
Mary on one pillar; the Eucharist on one pillar.
The 2 Hearts
Peace in time of trouble.
Consecration of the 2 Hearts.
The Blue Coast
The green of Florida and the flowers —
the palm trees — AWESOME
Beautiful —
Suffering makes life look
brighter —
God called me here today
to be with you —
To pray for reparation for all our sins to block His
mission — to pray for mercy — to recommit.
We are His instrument of building
God's Kingdom
God lives in the graced baptized soul —
Clearwater
The Blue Books
Love — not sins committed called 'love' by
men offending God.
A Shrine honoring Mary.
The crucifix — Jesus who died for us
Jesus, Mary — an arc in Florida pulling the
world to build the Kingdom of God — The Era of Peace —
God called these 5ths and 13ths.
Who is on your throne —
Is it God on your throne —
Are we following the Fatima message
Mary appeared —
They told me to quit getting messages
at the Holy Spirit Center while
Mary appeared daily —
Fr. Carter told me to leave the Holy Spirit Center.
They jailed the children at Fatima —
But they couldn't stop God.
God gave us Clearwater
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 November 5, 2003 Jesus instructed the prayer service be done inside |
 November 5, 2003 Jesus instructed the prayer service be done inside |
 December 5, 2003 Jesus instructed the prayer service be done inside |
 December 5, 2003 Jesus instructed the prayer service be done inside |
 December 5, 2003 Jesus instructed the prayer service be done inside |
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 February 5, 2004 |
 February 5, 2004 |
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Mary on the Arc —
The rainbow — a symbol
that God would never destroy
the earth again with a flood —Rebellion — disobedience
Abortion
Mary's head was knocked off —
hurricanes ravaged Florida like
belts crossing over — August 13, 2004
September 5, 2004
it continued
But Florida did not flood —
it is okay and the people
okay despite the hurricanes.
God kept His promise —
We put water all around Florida —
water from the wells of Jesus and Mary.
The Oil spill — Jesus and Mary water blessed by a priest.
We put water in June —
We put water July 4 Independence Day —
On July 13 cap put in place the oil restrained —
Again we put this water August 3.
Jesus: All the trees I have given you.
All My love given in golden
fields and
roaring waters.
Sing: Come to the Fields
Come to the Water
R. America's Heartland
Oh America I love you.
I love the fields that feed us —
Like the Eucharist feeds our
soul —
America Rivers, lakes, coast land
Water
Sing: America
Sing: Battle Hymn of the Republic
God's Blessings given to America
Say thanks
Give your heart to Jesus and Mary.
Jesus said we have reached
millions with the prayers
sent to the hierarchy and
over 35,000 priests in the US —
sending Fr. Joe's homilies on the Word and
love and the Eucharist —
Oil and water do not mix
Oil is spilled in the water —
We are divided — torn apart —
God wants unity —
order
oneness
Harmony and love —
Happiness comes from God —
We can have a wreck in one second —
Life on earth is promised to no man —
Suffering makes life look brighter —
In turmoil, anger and division —
Love brings peace
unity is not like the oil spilled
into water —
Life below the sea — the gulf
the ocean
God's love for us.
Jesus' face in Clearwater
Jesus' well
Mary's well
The Blue Books —
The rosary meditations
Clearwater —
Pure Love
Love of the 2 Hearts
Faith, Hope and Love
Men came to Florida searching for gold —
gold hunters.
Mary appeared gold —
rainbow gold
the Lady Clothed as the Sun
in rainbow color —
Many have been healed at the site.
Many have been healed with the waters.
Many have been healed with the prayers
and glass in the statue.
Give a gift that lasts.
$10.00 each plus shipping
Call 1-888-211-3041
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Holy Spirit Prayer Act of Consecration to
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Statues
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Our Lady-Guadalupe w/glass - 12
Limpias - 8
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Our Lady-Mt. Carmel w/glass - 18
Our Lady of Lourdes w/glass - 18
Infant of Prague w/glass - 24
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Sacred Heart -Blessing w/glass - 24
Sorrowful Mother w/glass - 24
I Heart - Ivory w/glass - 24
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Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 15
Fatima w/glass - 18
Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 18
Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 27
St. Padre Pio
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Limpias
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Divine Mercy
Holy Family
Angel
St. Philomena
Pieta - Marble
Pieta - Color
Holy Family
St. Anthony - 18
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St. Joseph - 18
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St. Rita - 12
St. Padre Pio - 12
ivine Mercy - 12
St. Michael - 11
Shepherds of Christ Ministries
P. O. Box 627
China, IN 47250
Toll free - 1-888-211-3041
Local - 1-812-273-8405
fax - 1-812-273-3182
web: www.sofc.org
e-mail: info@sofc.org
Size Price Quantity Holy Family
24"
$180
Limpias
24"
$125
St. Anthony
24"
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St. Claire
24"
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24"
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24"
$125
St. Jude
24"
$125
St. Padre Pio
24"
$125
St. Therese
24"
$125
Divine Mercy 22"
$125 Angel 22"
$100 St. Philomena 20"
$100 St. Philomena 16"
$65 St. Joseph 18"
$65 St. Francis 18"
$65 St. Anthony 18"
$65 St. Rita 18"
$65 St. Therese 18"
$65 Pieta - Color 15" $75 Pieta - Marble 15" $75 Holy Family 12"
$60 St. Padre Pio - standing 12"
$40 St. Padre Pio - sitting 8"
$50 St. Michael 11"
$40 St. Rita 12"
$40 Divine Mercy
12"
$40 St. Claire 12"
$40 Limpias 8"
$25 Our Lady of Guadalupe w/glass 28"
$500 Our Lady of Mt. Carmel w/glass 24"
$500 Immaculate Heart of Mary w/glass
24"
$500 Immaculate Heart - Ivory w/glass
24"
$500 Infant of Prague w/glass
24"
$500 Our Lady of Grace w/glass
24"
$500 Our Lady of Lourdes w/glass
24"
$500 Sacred Heart of Jesus w/glass 24"
$500 Sacred Heart -Blessing w/glass 24"
$500 Sorrowful Mother w/glass
24"
$500 Immaculate Heart of Mary w/glass 18"
$300 Immaculate Heart - Ivory w/glass 18"
$300 Sacred Heart of Jesus w/glass 18"
$300 Our Lady of Lourdes w/glass 18"
$300 Our Lady of Grace w/glass 18"
$300 Our Lady of Mt. Carmel w/glass
18" $300 Our Lady of Guadalupe w/glass 12"
$200 Fatima w/glass
11"
$150 Fatima w/glass
18"
$250 Pilgrim Virgin w/glass 12"
$160 Pilgrim Virgin w/glass 15" $200 Pilgrim Virgin w/glass 18" $250 Pilgrim Virgin w/glass 27"
$450
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Fr. Joe's Homily Books
Guiding Light - Cycle A
The Word Alive in Our Hearts$10.00
Guiding Light - Cycle B
Focusing on the Word$10.00
Guiding Light - Cycle C
Feed My Soul$10.00
Fr. Carter's Books
|
Priestly Newsletter Book I
12 Newsletters $12.00 |
17 Newsletters $12.00 |
Priestly Newsletter Book 3
4 Newsletters & Prayers $12.00 |
|
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Response to God's
Love |
Tell My People |
$10.00 |
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Synopsis of the Spiritual Life
Spirituality Handbook
|
$10.00 |
$10.00 |
Fr. Pasquini's Books
|
Authenticity |
In Imitation of Two Hearts
For those
suffering or |
Light, Happiness and Peace
Journeying through traditional $10.00 |
|
Medicine of Immortality
Prayers and Meditations - will assist the reader in growth toward a deeper understanding of the mystery of the Eucharist $10.00 |
Ideal for RCIA, Adult & Youth Bible Study, Homeschooling,
Catholic $10.00 |
Shepherds of Christ Newsletters $36.00 |
DVDs and CDs by Fr. Pasquini
|
Authenticity DVD $10.00 |
Nursing Home Mass DVD $10.00 |
Consolation DVD $10.00 |
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Medicine of Immortality 2 CDs - $17.00 |
In Imitation of Two Hearts DVD $10.00 |
Consolation CD $8.00 |
|
Nursing Home Mass CD $8.00 |
Holy Spirit Novena DVD
$10.00 |
Divine Mercy Chaplet DVD
$10.00 |
God’s Blue Books
God’s Blue Book 1 –
Teachings to Lift You Up$10.00
God’s Blue Book 4 –
The Love of the Hearts of
Jesus and Mary$5.00
God’s Blue Book 2 –
The Fire of His Love$10.00
God’s Blue Book 5 –
So Deep Is the Love of His Heart$5.00
God’s Blue Book 3 –
Love God, Love One Another
(Fr. Carter's favorite)
$10.00
God’s Blue Book 6 –
He Calls Us to Action$10.00
Rosary Books
Rosaries from the
Hearts of Jesus and Mary$10.00
Rosaries from the
Hearts of Jesus and Mary$12.00
Rosary Meditations for
Parents and Children's$10.00
Mysteries of Light 1
$5.00
Mysteries of Light 2
$5.00
Little People & Elderly Rosary Book
$10.00
Coloring Book
$5.00 each
Coloring Book
$5.00 each
Coloring Book
$5.00 eachColoring Book
$5.00 eachColoring Book
$5.00 each
Coloring Book
$5.00 each
The China Church is over 140 years old
and we pray in there 24 hours a day.
It needs stucco and so does
the community building.
Can you please help us?
Call Shepherds of Christ
1-888-211-3041
Likewise the priest house
is 150 years old.
Jesus told us to repair it
which we have been doing.
We need $13,000.00 for this work.
Crucifix — hand carved by Felix
Available for $750.00
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