Shepherds of Christ Daily Writing          

August 23, 2014

August 24th Holy Spirit Novena
Scripture selection is Day 8 Period I.

The Novena Rosary Mysteries 
for August 24th
are Glorious.

  

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                August 23, 2014 

Matthew 23: 1-12  

Then addressing the crowds and his disciples Jesus said, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees occupy the chair of Moses. You must therefore do and observe what they tell you; but do not be guided by what they do, since they do not practise what they preach. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people’s shoulders, but will they lift a finger to move them? Not they! Everything they do is done to attract attention, like wearing broader headbands and longer tassels, like wanting to take the place of honour at banquets and the front seats in the synagogues, being greeted respectfully in the market squares and having people call them Rabbi. 

    ‘You, however, must not allow yourselves to be called Rabbi, since you have only one Master, and you are all brothers. You must call no one on earth your father, since you have only one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor must you allow yourselves to be called teachers, for you have only one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant. Anyone who raises himself up will be humbled, and anyone who humbles himself will be raised up.

 

21 Years Ago

August 23, 1993

On His Passion

Jesus:  My dear child, I was condemned to death, death on a cross. They gave Me a big cross and made Me carry it. They stood around and glared at Me. It weighed on My shoulder and I pulled at it until it finally moved. Every step was almost impossible as I dragged it, weighing so heavily on My shoulders.

    My shoulder felt as if the bones inside would crack and the cross would fall through to the ground. I couldn’t drag it any more. I tried, I fell. I fell and its weight fell on Me. A guard hit Me with something sharp. It really hurt because he wanted Me to move, and fast! People were watching—on with the show! How dare I fall in the middle of the show! He hit Me again and the blow really stung Me. I got up because it hurt so badly. I tried to walk on.

    My Mother was in the crowd. She looked at Me and her face looked red and hurt. Tears rolled down her cheeks like rain and as her eyes met Mine, I was hurt so by her sorrow! She was always by My side, silent and loving. She was My mother of love! She is always there next to you when you suffer.

    I fell again and he (the guard) really hit Me. It (the cross) was so heavy that he and I together could barely move it. It seemed as I walked, heavier with the sins of the world heaped on it. My hands were bleeding. Blood ran from the wounds of My thorns and My head throbbed, seeming to make the wounds in My head bleed even more. Some of the Blood was dried, some of it running all over My Body. I had so many cuts and bruises—and people watched and laughed!

    I am Jesus, Son of the Living God, and they laughed and mimicked Me! Oh, such hardened hearts! How vile can men’s heart become? The devil’s grip is paralyzing and crippling.

    The walk was so long up a hill and over rocks—the cross had to be lifted over the rocks. My Body was bleeding so badly! My heart was pounding. I knew that the salvation of all men depended on My love. Therefore, I went through such agony.

    I thought of My intense love for you—that many would go to heaven because of My suffering—and I continued to the top of the hill. At the top they laid Me on the cross and with a big hammer nailed My hands to it. It was the worst (suffering) yet. My hands were nailed with big nails and the big hammer. Oh, it was unbelievable! Then, as if that weren’t enough, with a big nail they nailed through both feet.

    Then they lifted the cross and banged it into (a hole in) the ground. My shoulders ached from how I hung. My head bobbed and My neck ached and they laughed and said, "Now save Yourself." I hurt so much! I suffered this way for hours—which seemed like forever—and they glared at Me and laughed! My Mother watched in such agony.

    For love of you, to My death I gave you My Body. My child, I shed My Blood and gave you My life that you might be with Me forever in heaven -- not for a day, a month or a year, but forever with Me in heaven.

    I am the true Bread come down from heaven. He who eats My Flesh will have life forever. For the drink I give you is My Blood and food you eat is My Body. Who would lay down his life for a friend? I did, for you. I love you this much, child. Forget about those who reject you. You have My life that I gave you and I give you life eternal.

    I am the One true God. I am the Light of life. He who abides in Me will have life eternal, for the drink I give is My Blood and the food I give is My Body. Drink and eat and have everlasting life.

    My child, that is all you need to know. Love one another and be good that you may enter into My kingdom.

end of August 23, 1993

   

Song of Songs 2: 8-14

I hear my love. 
See how he comes 
leaping on the mountains, 
bounding over the hills. 
My love is like a gazelle, 
like a young stag. 

See where he stands 
behind our wall. 
He looks in at the window, 
he peers through the opening. 

My love lifts up his voice, 
he says to me, 
‘Come then, my beloved, 
my lovely one, come.
For see, winter is past,
the rains are over and gone.

‘Flowers are appearing on the earth.
The season of glad songs has come,
the cooing of the turtledove is heard in our land.
The fig tree is forming its first figs 
and the blossoming vines give out their fragrance. 
Come then, my beloved, 
my lovely one, come.

‘My dove, hiding in the clefts of the rock,
in the coverts of the cliff,
show me your face,
let me hear your voice;
for your voice is sweet
and your face is lovely.’

 

John 2: 1-11

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee. The mother of Jesus was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited. And they ran out of wine, since the wine provided for the feast had all been used, and the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ Jesus said, ‘Woman, what do you want from me? My hour has not come yet.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ There were six stone water jars standing there, meant for the ablutions that are customary among the Jews: each could hold twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water,’ and they filled them to the brim. Then he said to them, ‘Draw some out now and take it to the president of the feast.’ They did this; the president tasted the water, and it had turned into wine. Having no idea where it came from—though the servants who had drawn the water knew—the president of the feast called the bridegroom and said, ‘Everyone serves good wine first and the worse wine when the guests are well wined; but you have kept the best wine till now.’

This was the first of Jesus’ signs: it was at Cana in Galilee. He revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.
 
 

Genesis Chapter 3

Now, the snake was the most subtle of all the wild animals that Yahweh God had made. It asked the woman, 'Did God really say you were not to eat from any of the trees in the garden?' The woman answered the snake, 'We may eat the fruit of the trees in the garden. But of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden God said, "You must not eat it, nor touch it, under pain of death." ' Then the snake said to the woman, 'No! You will not die! God knows in fact that the day you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods, knowing good from evil.' The woman saw that the tree was good to eat and pleasing to the eye, and that it was enticing for the wisdom that it could give. So she took some of its fruit and ate it. She also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they realised that they were naked. So they sewed fig-leaves together to make themselves loin-cloths.

The man and his wife heard the sound of Yahweh God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from Yahweh God among the trees of the garden. But Yahweh God called to the man. 'Where are you?' he asked. 'I heard the sound of you in the garden,' he replied. 'I was afraid because I was naked, so I hid.' 'Who told you that you were naked?' he asked. 'Have you been eating from the tree I forbade you to eat?' The man replied, 'It was the woman you put with me; she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.' Then Yahweh God said to the woman, 'Why did you do that?' The woman replied, 'The snake tempted me and I ate.'

Then Yahweh God said to the snake, 'Because you have done this,

    Accursed be you
    of all animals wild and tame!
    On your belly you will go
    and on dust you will feed
    as long as you live.
    I shall put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and hers;
    it will bruise your head
    and you will strike its heel.'

    To the woman he said:

    I shall give you intense pain
        in childbearing,
    you will give birth to your children
        in pain.
    Your yearning will be for your husband,
    and he will dominate you.

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 you food,
    until you return to the ground,
    as you were taken from it.
    For dust you are
    and to dust you shall return.

The man named his wife 'Eve' because she was the mother of all those who live. Yahweh God made tunics of skins for the man and his wife and clothed them. Then Yahweh God said, 'Now that the man has become like one of us in knowing good from evil, he must not be allowed to reach out his hand and pick from the tree of life too, and eat and live for ever!' So Yahweh God expelled him from the garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he had been taken. He banished the man, and in front of the garden of Eden he posted the great winged creatures and the fiery flashing sword, to guard the way to the tree of life.

   
   

                August 23, 2014 continues

                Jesus: The world is the devil's boxing ring.

                The devil wants to take people into
                    the boxing ring and they think they
                    can be supreme over their
                    brother.

                When they give into the devil, lying to them,
                they see themselves as wanting and in
                    need of winning out over their
                    brother –

                When in fact – you are to work together –
                    IN LOVE – under God – Serving
                    God and building His Kingdom.

                    In the end – you know the truth
                is in God –

                    You know you must obey the
                commandments and live by the
                Word of God. You know you are to
                obey just authority –

                    children obey and love parents –
                    parents love each other –
                    parents love their children
                    and teach them to obey –

                Learning to be under just authority,
                    being under God –
                    is what God wants you to learn.

                Satan wants a man to rebel over
                    authority that God has put
                    over him –
                    Satan wants a man to disobey
                        the commandments –
                        to lie – bear false witness –
                        to prove or try to prove, he is
                        right when he is wrong –

                Satan is a liar, a deceiver –
                    he uses false reasoning to try to
                    manipulate men into giving
                    in to him –

                The more a person gives into satan – the
                    further he gets from God – which
                    makes him angry and dark and
                    divided with his brother inside –

                Further and further from the truth and
                    right reasoning –

                The devil is the father of lies –

                The devil can press on a man who has
                    rebelled more and more against
                    God's will –
                    to get him to give in –

                In a movie a man is tortured
                    to give in – trying to force
                    the person being tortured to give in.

                Satan is always starting a
                    WAR between men –
                    in marriages
                    a War of wills –

                Satan is a liar –
                One's life can become WAR –

                God wants love and peace and harmony.

                A person can always be at war and
                    use punishment through
                    things they need or know
                    God wants to try to force
                    them to give into thinking
                    that is wrong –
                    ways opposed to God –

                Satan presses on men and
                    uses them

                Like God fills men more and more and
                    they are an example of
                    the God that lives
                    within them

                Satan presses on a person
                    and doesn't let up if
                    one has been giving into
                    vices –

                We can have a hard time resisting
                    satan's temptation

                He needs God's grace to
                    love and not give into
                    anger and punishment of
                    his brothers –

                No man is an island –

                What we do acts as ripples
                    on a pond –

                Sin goes to the negative energy
                    in the world to make it
                    more dark –

                Satan wants war, disharmony,
                    anger – WAR –

                We see all the wars –
                    War, War, War

                Mary: You are to seek purity in your heart!
                    you are to love
                    not be prideful, greedy, envious, wrathful,
                    lustful, gluttony, and slothful.

                I am Mary your Mother.  
     

November 4, 2013


                Mary: Having war in your heart
                    is not like Jesus –
                    Satan wants constant war

                Satan wants a person seeking
                    control and power over
                    what God wants –

                Satan wants you destroying –
                    what you, yourself hold dear –

                People destroy their own relationship
                    when satan presses on them
                    and they act –
                    their own relationship with
                    those they love –
                    They take gifts God gives and
                        throw it back
                        at God

                Look at World War II –
                    People were victims of
                        one man's plan to wipe
                        out the Jews

                You can give into satan and
                    act in hatred against
                    what you love and tear
                    it apart for satan –

 

        Excerpt of The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, by Louis J. Puhl, S.J.
 

136. THE FOURTH DAY

        A MEDITATION ON TWO STANDARDS

The one of Christ, our supreme leader and lord,
the other of Lucifer, the deadly enemy of our
human nature

PRAYER.   The usual preparatory prayer.

window at a former Jesuit Seminary

137. FIRST PRELUDE.   This is the history. Here it will be that Christ calls and wants all beneath His standard, and Lucifer, on the other hand, wants all under his.

138. SECOND PRELUDE.   This is a mental representation of the place. It will be here to see a great plain, comprising the whole region about Jerusalem, where the sovereign Commander-in-Chief of all the good is Christ our Lord; and another plain about the region of Babylon, where the chief of the enemy is Lucifer.

139. THIRD PRELUDE.   This is to ask for what I desire. Here it will be to ask for a knowledge of the deceits of the rebel chief and help to guard myself against them; and also to ask for a knowledge of the true life exemplified in the sovereign and true Commander, and the grace to imitate Him.
   

FIRST PART

THE STANDARD OF SATAN

140. FIRST POINT.   Imagine you see the chief of all the enemy in the vast plain about Babylon, seated on a great throne of fire and smoke, his appearance inspiring horror and terror.

141. SECOND POINT.   Consider how he summons innumerable demons, and scatters them, some to one city and some to another, throughout the whole world, so that no province, no place, no state of life, no individual is overlooked.

142. THIRD POINT.   Consider the address he makes to them, how he goads them on to lay snares for men and bind them with chains. First they are to tempt them to covet riches (as Satan himself is accustomed to do in most cases) that they may the more easily attain the empty honors of this world, and then come to overweening pride.

   The first step, then, will be riches, the second honor, the third pride. From these three steps the evil one leads to all other vices.
   

SECOND PART

THE STANDARD OF CHRIST

143.   In a similar way, we are to picture to ourselves the sovereign and true Commander, Christ our Lord.

144. FIRST POINT.   Consider Christ our Lord, standing in a lowly place in a great plain about the region of Jerusalem, His appearance beautiful and attractive.

145. SECOND POINT.   Consider how the Lord of all the world chooses so many persons, apostles, disciples, etc., and sends them throughout the whole world to spread His sacred doctrine among all men, no matter what their state or condition.

146. THIRD POINT.   . . .
   

end of excerpt of The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius

 

                Jesus: Holding out –

                Satan lies to tell a person –
                    Not acting is okay –
                    When you have a responsibility
                        under God to do something –
                        Not acting
                        IS a choice – IS acting –
                        IS disobeying God
                        Has consequences

                Satan is a snake looking for
                someone who is loving and just
                to devour.

                    Satan is hate –
                    Satan hates love and unity
                    Satan hates relationships
                    Satan wants power to tear
                        apart and destroy
                    Satan wants to destroy homes,
                        family, love, celebrations,
                        prayer, kindness

                Satan moves ahead to attack
                    the jugular vein with
                    so much energy
                    he never gives up until he
                    destroys it –

                In World War II – people's bodies were
                    destroyed like rates –
                    buildings torn to shreds –

                Nothing is bad enough
                    for satan –

                Satan works in pride and
                    anger, the pompous
                    man becomes sterile –
                    unfeeling –

                Seeing his evil as right he
                    never admits he is
                    wrong –

                In his twisted thinking he
                    can never be corrected –
                    he is angered when any
                    of his evil is verbalized
                    so he punishes more and
                    more and more

                I look at the heart –

                Lies are from satan –

                A man telling lies pushes
                    himself from Me –

                A man is to live His whole
                    life to be an instrument of love,
                    where only the truth
                    is in him –

                Truth brings man to reality
                    of the seen and unseen –

                I will, in the end, judge
                    justly the men who argued
                    and lived to argue and bring
                    division where I sent My
                    gifts to build up the
                    Church and the world –

                I sent the Shepherds of Christ to bring
                    unity and love
                    operating in one mind and
                        one heart –

                Spreading the Consecration to Our Two Hearts
 


 

                Jesus: Life in My Mind and My Heart

                I will judge justly those
                    who spread error and
                    live blocking the Plan
                    of My Heavenly Father –

                The evil actions go on affecting
                    generations and generations –

                    There is no fruit from
                the man who lies and
                selfishly blocks My Plan
                of renewal –

                The souls affected by the
                    efforts of the man
                    lying and spreading
                    evil is part of
                    his actions –

                Did you ever see a man
                    throw a feather pillow
                    to the earth –

                    If the pillow was love –
                love would abound and
                never die for generations
                to come –

                    I will not tolerate one
                tearing up their own
                glory and lying about it –

                    lying for vain power over
                others, forcing their way in
                punishment and even death
                to the innocent –

                    They hold out like the
                terrorist to watch others
                fall to their evil demands

                Holding out needed things are actions
                    against God to force others
                    to obey them.

                Holding a religious position
                over others and destroying
                My Church, My
                community –
                My world crumbling in
                which you destroy those
                praying is the way of satan

                    You fool – games
                are not hidden before Me –
                purify your hearts.
                 
 

Excerpt of The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, by Louis J. Puhl, S.J. pp. 141-150

  

313. RULES FOR DISCERNMENT OF SPIRITS
I

Rules for understanding to some extent the different movements produced in the soul and for recognizing those that are good to admit them, and those that are bad, to reject them. These rules are more suited to the first week
  

314.  I.  In the case of those who go from one mortal sin to another, the enemy is ordinarily accustomed to propose apparent pleasures. He fills their imagination with sensual delights and gratifications, the more readily to keep them in their vices and increase the number of their sins.

    With such persons the good spirit uses a method which is the reverse of the above. Making use of the light of reason, he will rouse the sting of conscience and fill them with remorse.

315.  2.  In the case of those who go on earnestly striving to cleanse their souls from sin and who seek to rise in the service of God our Lord to greater perfection, the method pursued is the opposite of that mentioned in the first rule.

    Then it is characteristic of the evil spirit to harass with anxiety, to afflict with sadness, to raise obstacles backed by fallacious reasonings that disturb the soul. Thus he seeks to prevent the soul from advancing.

    It is characteristic of the good spirit, however, to give courage and strength, consolations, tears, inspirations, and peace. This He does by making all easy, by removing all obstacles so that the soul goes forward in doing good.

316.  3.  SPIRITUAL CONSOLATION.  I call it consolation when an interior movement is aroused in the soul, by which it is inflamed with love of its Creator and Lord, and as a consequence, can love no creature on the face of the earth for its own sake, but only in the Creator of them all. It is likewise consolation when one sheds tears that move to the love of God, whether it be because of sorrow for sins, or because of the sufferings of Christ our Lord, or for any other reason that is immediately directed to the praise and service of God. Finally, I call consolation every increase of faith, hope, and love, and all interior joy that invites and attracts to what is heavenly and to the salvation of one's soul by filling it with peace and quiet in its Creator and Lord.

317.  4.  SPIRITUAL DESOLATION.  I call desolation what is entirely the opposite of what is described in the third rule, as darkness of soul, turmoil of spirit, inclination to what is low and earthly, restlessness rising from many disturbances and temptations which lead to want of faith, want of hope, want of love. The soul is wholly slothful, tepid, sad, and separated, as it were, from its Creator and Lord. For just as consolation is the opposite of desolation, so the thoughts that spring from consolation are the opposite of those that spring from desolation.

318.  5.  In time of desolation we should never make any change, but remain firm and constant in the resolution and decision which guided us the day before the desolation, or in the decision to which we adhered in the preceding consolation. For just as in consolation the good spirit guides and counsels us, so in desolation the evil spirit guides and counsels. Following his counsels we can never find the way to a right decision.

319.  6.  Though in desolation we must never change our former resolutions, it will be very advantageous to intensify our activity against the desolation. We can insist more upon prayer, upon meditation, and on much examination of ourselves. We can make an effort in a suitable way to do some penance.

320.  7.  When one is in desolation, he should be mindful that God has left him to his natural powers to resist the different agitations and temptations of the enemy in order to try him. He can resist with the help of God, which always remains, though he may not clearly perceive it. For though God has taken from him the abundance of fervor and overflowing love and the intensity of His favors, nevertheless, he has sufficient grace for eternal salvation.

321.  8.  When one is in desolation, he should strive to persevere in patience. This reacts against the vexations that have overtaken him. Let him consider, too, that consolation will soon return, and in the meantime, he must diligently use the means against desolation which have been given in the sixth rule.

322.  9.  The principal reasons why we suffer from desolation are three:

    The first is because we have been tepid and slothful or negligent in our exercises of piety, and so through our own fault spiritual consolation has been taken away from us.

    The second reason is because God wishes to try us, to see how much we are worth, and how much we will advance in His service and praise when left without the generous reward of consolations and signal favors.

    The third reason is because God wishes to give us a true knowledge and understanding of ourselves, so that we may have an intimate perception of the fact that it is not within our power to acquire and attain great devotion, intense love, tears, or any other spiritual consolation; but that all this is the gift and grace of God our Lord. God does not wish us to build on the property of another, to rise up in spirit in a certain pride and vainglory and attribute to ourselves the devotion and other effects of spiritual consolation.

323.  10.  When one enjoys consolation, let him consider how he will conduct himself during the time of ensuing desolation, and store up a supply of strength as defense against that day.

324.  11.  He who enjoys consolation should take care to humble himself and lower himself as much as possible. Let him recall how little he is able to do in time of desolation, when he is left without such grace or consolation.

    On the other hand, one who suffers desolation should remember that by making use of the sufficient grace offered him, he can do much to withstand all his enemies. Let him find his strength in his Creator and Lord.

325.  12.  The enemy conducts himself as a woman. He is a weakling before a show of strength, and a tyrant if he has his will. It is characteristic of a woman in a quarrel with a man to lose courage and take to flight if the man shows that he is determined and fearless. However, if the man loses courage and begins to flee, the anger, vindictiveness, and rage of the woman surge up and know no bounds. In the same way, the enemy becomes weak, loses courage, and turns to flight with his seductions as soon as one leading a spiritual life faces his temptations boldly, and does exactly the opposite of what he suggests. However, if one begins to be afraid and to lose courage in temptations, no wild animal on earth can be more fierce than the enemy of our human nature. He will carry out his perverse intentions with consummate malice.

326.  13.  Our enemy may also be compared in his manner of acting to a false lover. He seeks to remain hidden and does not want to be discovered. If such a lover speaks with evil intention to the daughter of a good father, or to the wife of a good husband, and seeks to seduce them, he wants his words and solicitations kept secret. He is greatly displeased if his evil suggestions and depraved intentions are revealed by the daughter to her father, or by the wife to her husband. Then he readily sees he will not succeed in what he has begun. In the same way, when the enemy of our human nature tempts a just soul with his wiles and seductions, he earnestly desires that they be received secretly and kept secret. But if one manifests them to a confessor, or to some other spiritual person who understands his deceits and malicious designs, the evil one is very much vexed. For he knows that he cannot succeed in his evil undertaking, once his evident deceits have been revealed.

327.  14.  The conduct of our enemy may also be compared to the tactics of a leader intent upon seizing and plundering a position he desires. A commander and leader of an army will encamp, explore the fortifications and defenses of the stronghold, and attack at the weakest point. In the same way, the enemy of our human nature investigates from every side all our virtues, theological, cardinal, and moral. Where he finds the defenses of eternal salvation weakest and most deficient, there he attacks and tries to take us by storm.

       
 

328. RULES FOR DISCERNMENT OF SPIRITS
II

Further rules for understanding the different movements produced in the soul. They serve for a more accurate discernment of spirits and are more suitable for the second week
  

329.  I.  It is characteristic of God and His Angels, when they act upon the soul, to give true happiness and spiritual joy, and to banish all the sadness and disturbances which are caused by the enemy.
   It is characteristic of the evil one to fight against such happiness and consolation by proposing fallacious reasonings, subtilties, and continual deceptions.

330.  2.  God alone can give consolation to the soul without any previous cause. It belongs solely to the Creator to come into a soul, to leave it, to act upon it, to draw it wholly to the love of His Divine Majesty. I said without previous cause, that is, without any preceding perception or knowledge of any subject by which a soul might be led to such a consolation through its own acts of intellect and will.

331.  3.  If a cause precedes, both the good angel and the evil spirit can give consolation to a soul, but for a quite different purpose. The good angel consoles for the progress of the soul, that it may advance and rise to what is more perfect. The evil spirit consoles for purposes that are the contrary, and that afterwards he might draw the soul to his own perverse intentions and wickedness.

332.  4.  It is a mark of the evil spirit to assume the appearance of an angel of light. He begins by suggesting thoughts that are suited to a devout soul, and ends by suggesting his own. For example, he will suggest holy and pious thoughts that are wholly in conformity with the sanctity of the soul. Afterwards, he will endeavor little by little to end by drawing the soul into his hidden snares and evil designs.

333.  5.  We must carefully observe the whole course of our thoughts. If the beginning and middle and end of the course of thoughts are wholly good and directed to what is entirely right, it is a sign that they are from the good angel. But the course of thoughts suggested to us may terminate in something evil, or distracting, or less good than the soul had formerly proposed to do. Again, it may end in what weakens the soul, or disquiets it; or by destroying the peace, tranquility, and quiet which it had before, it may cause disturbance to the soul. These things are a clear sign that the thoughts are proceeding from the evil spirit, the enemy of our progress and eternal salvation.

334.  6.  When the enemy of our human nature has been detected and recognized by the trail of evil marking his course and by the wicked end to which he leads us, it will be profitable for one who has been tempted to review immediately the whole course of the temptation. Let him consider the series of good thoughts, how they arose, how the evil one gradually attempted to make him step down from the state of spiritual delight and joy in which he was, till finally he drew him to his wicked designs. The purpose of this review is that once such an experience has been understood and carefully observed, we may guard ourselves for the future against the customary deceits of the enemy.

335.  7.  In souls that are progressing to greater perfection, the action of the good angel is delicate, gentle, delightful. It may be compared to a drop of water penetrating a sponge.
    The action of the evil spirit upon such souls is violent, noisy, and disturbing. It may be compared to a drop of water falling upon a stone.
    In souls that are going from bad to worse, the action of the spirits mentioned above is just the reverse. The reason for this is to be sought in the opposition or similarity of these souls to the different kinds of spirits. When the disposition is contrary to that of the spirits, they enter with noise and commotion that are easily perceived. When the disposition is similar to that of the spirits, they enter silently, as one coming into his own house when the doors are open.

336.  8.  When consolation is without previous cause, as was said, there can be no deception in it, since it can proceed from God our Lord only. But a spiritual person who has received such a consolation must consider it very attentively, and must cautiously distinguish the actual time of the consolation from the period which follows it. At such a time the soul is still fervent and favored with the grace and aftereffects of the consolation which has passed. In this second period the soul frequently forms various resolutions and plans which are not granted directly by God our Lord. They may come from our own reasoning on the relations of our concepts and on the consequences of our judgments, or they may come from the good or evil spirit. Hence, they must be carefully examined before they are given full approval and put into execution.

end of excerpt

 

John 14:15-21, 25-27

If you love me
   you will keep my commandments.
I shall ask the Father,
and he will give you another Paraclete
to be with you for ever,
the Spirit of truth
whom the world can never accept
since it neither sees nor knows him;
but you know him,
because he is with you, he is in you.
I shall not leave you orphans;
I shall come to you.
In a short time
   the world will no longer see me;
but you will see that I live
and you also will live.
On that day
you will know that I am in my Father
and you in me and I in you.
Whoever holds to my commandments
   and keeps them
is the one who loves me;
and whoever loves me
   will be loved by my Father,
and I shall love him
   and reveal myself to him.'

I have said these things to you
while still with you;
but the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all I have said to you.
Peace I bequeath to you,
my own peace I give you,
a peace which the world cannot give,
    this is my gift to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled
    or afraid.
 
 

Matthew 5: 1-11

                The Beatitudes

Seeing the crowds, he went onto the mountain. And when he was
seated his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak. This is
what he taught them:

How blessed are the poor in spirit:
the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
Blessed are the gentle:
they shall have the earth as inheritance.
Blessed are those who mourn:
they shall be comforted.
Blessed are those
   who hunger and thirst for uprightness:
they shall have their fill.
Blessed are the merciful:
they shall have mercy shown them.
Blessed are the pure in heart:
they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers:
they shall be recognised
   as children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted
   in the cause of uprightness:
the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.  

Blessed are you when people abuse you and persecute you and
speak all kinds of calumny against you falsely on my account.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will we great in heaven:
this is how they persecuted the prophets before you.

 

Zephaniah 3: 14-18

Shout for joy, daughter of Zion, 
Israel, shout aloud! 
Rejoice, exult with all your heart, 
daughter of Jerusalem! 
Yahweh has repealed your sentence; 
he has turned your enemy away. 
Yahweh is king among you, Israel, 
you have nothing more to fear. 

When that Day comes, 
    the message for Jerusalem will be: 
Zion, have no fear, 
do not let your hands fall limp. 
Yahweh your God is there with you, 
the warrior–Saviour. 
He will rejoice over you with happy song, 
he will renew you by his love, 
he will dance with shouts of joy for you, 
as on a day of festival.

    

October 5, 1992 - 3:30am

R.  Dear Jesus, Give me Your hand to write this book for you. I am your servant. I want to be Your hand to this world. If you, Lord Jesus, would write a book, what would you say?

Jesus:  My dear children,

   Today I come to deliver a message to each of you. I want to tell you of each person's dignity, of their beauty and their self-worth. Each child is, oh, so uniquely precious to My Most Sacred Heart. Each child is full of the talents I have given to them. Each person is divinely created by God and given all these gifts to be happy and love one another.

   The problem comes when you feel you will be left out. That you will be left by another who has trodden on you and will do it again. I see you all as My most precious children. I watch your every move and know all pain and anguish in your heart. My Heart aches, you have insecure feelings about yourself. I came to this earth I died for you. I felt cold, hungry, lonely on this earth. You need not worry that no one knows the pain and anguish in your heart. God created you with such special gifts and talents. It is important for you to raise above your wound and forgive those who hurt you.

   You need only turn your will and your life over to Me and I will guide you in all your ways. I have all the Power. Many are not of My ways. The key to life is to recognize your faults, but still know you are this precious gift of My Father a gift to this world. This world is in need of your strength. Running yourself down, blaming others hurting them can cause you misery and pain. At this very moment, you are the precious creation of God!! You must operate with Me in your heart.

   You need not run yourself down. I am with you every day guiding your ways, lest your foot stumble and you lose your way. You will not wander far from your path if every day you keep bringing your focus back to Me. If you dare let Me be at the helm, if you dare to really let Me run your life, I will do with you such wonders that you yourself would be amazed. But you will know with such ease when you did these things that you did not do them alone. You will know My power, moving the mountain, My power chipping at the stone, My power working on your hardest problem and you will be set free.

   Oh yes, you will be set free and know a serenity that only comes from letting go and letting Me run your life. To you, My child, I have given all that is good. I made you My holy soldier, My warrior in a world of pain and hatred. You are the light that shines in the darkness, you are the coat to a cold child, you are the smile that warms a troubled and lonely heart. You are the comfort for everyone you meet, because My most precious Heart powers you, smiles through you, understands and loves through you.

   Love your fellows for Me. There are so many troubled hearts that need to know My love. I can love through you if you let Me, I can be their friend through you if you let Me. I am He who comforts you and you are he who comforts them. My power is endless, it never runs out, there is not a power failure EVER. In your darkest hour, My light shines in the darkness and I say to you, "Oh blessed of My Father, look at yourself with awe, you are My creation, you are indeed so precious to Me, you are My light to this world, you are My hands and My feet and most of all My Heart."

   Oh, you are My loving Heart, to those who are bowed down, to those who are lost in the darkness, you carry My smile and wear My armor in a world that is trying to tear one another down with hate and ugliness. There is gentleness, there is love, there is hope in you, if you open yourself up to Me. Be My knight to the world, wear My armor. I am your God and I will protect you from the darkness. Plug into My power, be not afraid, I go before you always and you can rest in My arms when you feel weary. You can put your head in My lap and weep, you will know, I am truly with you and you are My light to this world. I created you so special - to cast out fear in the darkness, to clothe the naked, to give hope to the oppressed, to be as I live in you and love through you and you are My smile and I touch My hurting ones through your love.

   You are he who loves this world. You must stay plugged into My power-source. This world is hungry for My love. It needs My love, I give to them through you. I am your God and I made you as a gift to the world. You are filled.

    Focus on Me and your life will be abundant and whole, joy in suffering, freedom — but  you can take the knocks because you will know you do not go it alone, but with Me. I love you My precious child.

end of October 5, 1992

 

                Excerpt from Response in Christ by Fr. Edward J. Carter, S.J.

SIX    The Christian and Sin 

We should not have a sin-centered mentality. Christ wants us to focus our attention on the positive aspects of the Christian existence. Still, we should not minimize the existence of sin and the part each of us has contributed to the sinfulness of the world. Anyone who tends to doubt the enormous dimension of sin throughout man's history has only to read scripture to be reminded of the truth. Every age has been hauntered by sin's presence, our own being no exception. Some say that the modern world is not conscious of sin, but this observation does not seem to be entirely true. Modern man has articulated his consciousness of sin very noticeably through contemporary literature, philosophy and theology.

To be realistic, then, each of us must be properly conscious of sin, of our own sinfulness, of the fact that sin constitutes one of the major obstacles to the proper growth of the Christian life. 

  1. The Nature of Sin

What is the nature of sin? Contemporary theology emphasizes that sin is not primarily a violation of a law, but a disruption of personal relationships. Sin is a refusal to love. Serious sin is a radical refusal to love. Venial sin is a partial refusal to love. 

The most obvious personal relationship that is affected by sin is that between God and the sinner. In sinning a man fails, to a lesser or greater degree, to accept God's loving gift of Himself. He fails also to respond with his own gift of love. In serious sin man refuses intimate friendship with God. In venial sin he dulls the ardor of that friendship. Man, in so far as he sins, maintains that he does not want his life to be directed by the loving hand of his heavenly Father. He wants to be a law for himself; he wants to be the one who decides what is good for himself and what is not. Schoonenberg observes: "Especially in the prophets sin is an aversion from and an unfaithfulness to Yahweh himself; hence it is placed in the heart rather than in the wrong deed. We see that aversion, that rebelliousness, that lack of faith which precede the act of transgressing the Law already in the story of the sin in paradise, where it is presented as the wish of possessing autonomously the knowledge of good and evil, of being independently the Law unto oneself. . .”1 

As we sin and fail to love God, we close in upon ourselves. We prevent a further growth in openness to transcendence, to God and to His grace. We block off the source of our only real self-development and fulfillment. To the extent that we close in upon ourselves in sin, to that extent we feel the misery of sin. This misery of spiritual "self-enclosedness" is a faint participation in the essential pain of hell. The damned are eternally and completely closed in upon themselves, completely deprived of God and other personal relationships. This, then, is hell the damned really experiencing no one but themselves. Hell is God's ratification of the choice which the unrepentant serious sinner has himself made. This choice is one of radical self-isolation. 

Sin is primarily a refusal to love God, a refusal to be loved by Him, to be guided by Him. In sinning, man seeks for a false fulfillment, and therefore actually becomes impoverished. The great St. Augustine puts it this way: "For when the soul loves its own power, it slips from the common whole to its own particular part. Had it followed God as its ruler in the universal creature, it could have been most excellently governed by His laws. But in that apostatizing pride, which is called 'the beginning of sin', it sought for something more that the whole; and while it struggled to govern by its own laws, it was thrust into caring for a part, since there is nothing more than the whole; and so by desiring something more, it becomes less. . .”2 

Yes, sin is an act disruptive of one's relationship with God. But sin has other dimensions also. It is a refusal to love other men as we should. For the Christian, sin is an offense against the covenant life of the People of God. In some way the sinfulness of the individual Christian makes itself felt in the corporate body which is the Church. The Christian, in sinning, is failing to love the corporate good of the People of God. He is failing to contribute his share to the progressive maturation in Christ of the total Christian community. The Christian in his sin becomes a burden to the People of God.  

Sin also is an obvious refusal to love others in those instances when one directly harms others through his transgression. So many sins come under this category: theft, all forms of uncharity, social injustice, scandal, detraction. Furthermore, not only does one man often sin against another, but he frequently leads another into sin. In God's plan man is supposed to help his neighbor achieve his temporal and eternal happiness, but how often, even among Christians, the opposite is true. Not to make a positive contribution to the true growth of others is failure enough, but to be a positive hindrance is a far greater evil. 

There is still another way in which the sinner refuses love to his fellowmen; when man sins he makes his contribution to the "sin of the world.”3 He thus adds to that huge, negative weight, nourished by the sins of the centuries, a weight which is always trying to draw man away from his God-given destiny. This mass of sinful ugliness, this "sin of the world," always has its considerable influence, but at times its hideousness makes itself especially manifest. The great race riots which have tragically risen up recently in various parts of the United States are examples of these special manifestations of the "sin of the world." Such events are not isolated instances of sins connected with race. In back of such tragedies there is a long history of grave social and racial sins, of seething hatred of white for black, and black for white. Such accumulated sinfulness in regard to race is part of the "sin of the world." 

There are many other examples of these special manifestations of the "sin of the world." There are the world wars and the lesser wars, with their share of unbelievable accounts of the hatred which man can impose upon his fellowman. There are the histories of the various crime syndicates throughout the world with all their blatant categories of human degradation narcotics, prostitution, terrorization and the rest. There are the sins of colonialism and the sins of communism. 

The "sin of the world" with its stark and bold manifestations is a sickening reality. But a reality it is. And each man's sinfulness adds a little to this universal world sin. Each man's sinfulness contributes to sin's divisiveness. Man is intended to help Christ progressively unify all creation more and more into Himself. When man sins, he contributes to the disruptive and disunifying force of the "sin of the world." 

Sin, then, because it is a failure to love God, man and the world, is selfishness. Sin seems to offer some sort of happiness, or advantage, or fulfillment. But this is a delusion. Sin can accomplish none of these things, because man's only real happiness and fulfillment comes from his authentic relationship in love with God, his fellowman and the rest of creation. Sin works against all these relationships. 

Sin is so hard to understand because it is an absurdity. But if we are to grow properly in the Christian life, we must have some basic realization of what sin is, and of God's attitude towards sin and the sinner. Our best source for such a mature realization is given to us in the crucified Christ. In this figure we can know all the Father wants us to comprehend concerning sin. First of all, Christ crucified tells us very starkly of the overwhelming heinousness of sin. We know that sin is overwhelmingly evil because it alone could nail Incarnate Goodness to the cross. Secondly, Christ crucified speaks to us concerning the justice of God. God's justice does ask satisfaction for sin yes, even that satisfaction which is the death of His Son. Thirdly, and very importantly for us poor sinners, the crucified Christ speaks to us unmistakably and overwhelmingly of the Father's great love and mercy towards us. Because of this love and mercy we can be so positive about human existence, for great as is the power of sin, the love and mercy of the Father, incarnated in His Son, is infinitely greater. This is our peace and consolation. 

God's love and mercy moves the sinner toward repentance, and when the sinner repents, God's love changes him. In Isaiah the prophet we read: " 'Come now, let us talk this over, says Yahweh. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.' " (Is 1:18). 

Included in our sorrow for sin is a resolve to take the proper means and precautions to avoid sin in the future. One of the reasons we fall into the same sins with the same frequency is that we tend often enough not to go to the root causes of our failures, and, consequently, we often fail to apply the more efficacious remedies. All this not to say that we should become morbidly introspective in looking at sinfulness. However, without succumbing to this type of introspection, we all must allow for appropriate self-examination and self-knowledge. 

Part of this self-examination and self-knowledge includes the manner in which I handle temptation in my life. The proper attitude toward temptation lies between two extremes. The person at one extreme is overly fearful of temptation, concentrates too much on avoiding it, and can even tend to equate temptation with sin. Such an attitude toward temptation breeds a negative mentality toward the Christian life, and detracts from the peace, joy and happiness which Christ wants us to experience. 

The opposite attitude is that which is careless towards temptation. To take reasonable and grace-inspired precautions against temptation is not to be negativistic, but realistic. It is to realize that I am a sinner, and that there are various ways by which I can be led to sin. I cannot avoid all temptations, but out of loyalty to Christ, man and the world, I should not recklessly bring temptation upon myself. 

Despite our best efforts there will always be some sin in our lives, unless God were to give extraordinary graces. There is only one human person, as far as our certain knowledge goes, who has been preserved from all sin. This person is Christ's mother, Mary. Let us remember this very important point, however. The Church's teaching that we cannot avoid all venial sin without a very special assistance from God refers to semi-deliberate venial sin. With God's ordinary graces we can avoid all fully deliberate sin, both serious and venial. It is this fully deliberate sin which is such an obstacle to our proper growth in the Christian life. Finally, let us remember that as we grow in Christ, even the number of semi-deliberate sins become fewer.

  1. The Sacrament of Penance

All of us are sinners, and God in His mercy has made special provision for this fact. He has given us the sacrament of penance. It is fitting in fact necessary as regards serious sin that the Christian incarnate his sorrow for sin through this sacrament. This is in keeping with the incarnational and sacramental dimensions of our life of grace. These dimensions impel us to exteriorize or incarnate our interior life of grace. The central focus for such exteriorization is the Mass and the sacraments. This exteriorization satisfies both our corporeal and social nature. 

As regards this social aspect of grace-life exteriorization, the Christian must always remember that he is a member of the new covenant, he is a member of a community. In sinning he has not only failed to love God, he has also sinned against the Christian community, and against man in general. As he expresses his sorrow for sin to God in the sacrament of penance, the Christian also gives expression to this communal aspect of his Christianity, because the sacraments have a very definite communal dimension. They are the sacraments of a community, the People of God. Through the sacrament of penance, therefore, the Christian expresses his sorrow to God in community and he likewise receives God's forgiveness in community. 

Certain contemporary practices which strive to bring forth more fully the communal aspect of the sacrament of penance are to be highly recommended.4 The practices we speak of are those in which there is a preparation for private confession and absolution through communal readings, prayer and examination of conscience.  

What about the frequency of receiving the sacrament of penance? Some in the Church today seem to be questioning the value of frequent confessions of devotion, that is, confessions which are not necessary because there is no serious sin. What is the truth of the matter? First of all, it must be admitted that in the early Church this sacrament was administered much less frequently that it is today. Gradually, the practice of frequent confession inserted itself more and more into the life of the Church. It is difficult not to admit that such a practice has taken root under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Frequent confession, although not necessary, has various values. Rahner, in his usual penetrating manner, gives a contemporary description of the value of frequent confession of devotion.5 The new Dutch catechism puts it very simply: "Some Catholics have the habit of receiving the sacrament frequently. If this is the result of anxieties, it is not advisable. But if it is due to a desire to meet Christ as the Lord who forgives, frequent confession can be a very evangelical practice."6 

In conclusion, we remind ourselves that the struggle against sin is part of the Christian participation in Christ's death-resurrection. In baptism we die to sin and rise to a newness of life. We are constantly living out one aspect of our baptism, then, through our continual resistance to the forces of sin. As with all elements of our Christian existence, such an effort requires motivation. We can use a variety of motives, of course, but all of them ultimately will be centered in Christ. To grow in the realization of what sin has cost Christ is to grow in the determination to avoid sin. To permeate such determination with love of Christ is to respond to Him who has loved us first: "The life I now live in this body I live in faith: faith in the Son of God who loved me and who sacrificed himself for my sake." (Ga 2:20).

 ______

1. P. Schoonenberg, Man and Sin (Notre Dame, Indiana: Fides, 1965), p. 8.
2. St. Augustine, The Trinity, Bk. 12, Ch. 14 (Washington: Fathers of the Church, 1963), p. 356.
3. For one description of the "sin of the world", see Schoonenberg, Op. cit., pp. 98-123.
4. One description of such services is given by A. M. Roguet, O.P., "Les celebrations communautaires de la penitence" in Vie spirituelle, 116 (1967), pp. 188-202.
5. Cf. Karl Rahner, Theological Investigations, Vol. III (Baltimore: Helicon, 1967), pp. 177-189.
6. A New Catechism (New York: Herder & Herder, 1967), p. 459.

 

 

                Given March 21, 2014

                R. Pray for These Things

                1) Sally Jo, Richard, Carol, Margaret, Sue, Jack & Jean,
                    John's dad, Special intentions
               
2) Pray for the priests, the Church and the world!
                3) Pray for the spread of prayer chapters,
                    also for the spread of priests doing prayer chapters.
                4) Pray for the spread of Blue Books.
                5) People going to Florida and China.
                6) Vocations to all 7 categories.
                7) Pray for spread of Consecration and Rosary.
                8) Pray for pope helping us.
                9) Pray for Jeff - sales & health. Pray for Nick.
               10) Blue Book 13 cover; Blue Book 12, Blue Book 13 – all involved.
                    For our Publisher and all involved
               11) All intentions on my list, Jerry's list.
               12) Priests getting Fr. Joe's book.
               13) Donors and members and their families.
               14) Healing of the Family tree.
               15) Dan & Melanie, Catherine & mom, Gary, Mary Jo,
                    Jim & statues, Fr. Ken, Monsignor, Kerry, Tom & wife.
               16) All who asked us to pray for them.
               17) All we promised to pray for.
               18) Rita, John, Doris, Sheila, Jerry, Regina, Sanja,
                    Betty, Sophie, Lisa, Eileen, Fr. Mike, Louie,
                    2 Dons, Mary Ellen, Fr. Joe, all priests helping us,
                    Ed, Jimmy, Steve, a special couple, Rosie & all involved.
               19) 2 babies and moms.
               20) Funds and insurance.
               21) Jerry's garage.
               22) In thanksgiving for gifts, graces, & blessings received.
               23) Spread the Blood of Jesus on all of us here.
               24) Consecrate all hearts.
               25) Cast the devil out of all of us here and all in Movement.

 

 

 

 
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