Shepherds of Christ Daily Writing          

September 23, 2014

September 24th Holy Spirit Novena
Scripture selection is Day 2 Period I.

The Novena Rosary Mysteries 
for September 24th are Sorrowful.

  
 
Pray for Dan, Blue Book 14,
Fr. Joe's homily book, &
for a really special intention.

 

Sidney Rosary
September 23rd - 6:20pm
Please tune in!!

   
 

                Given September 22, 2014

                R. Being a man is being like Jesus –
                Being a man is being holy –
                Being a man is to be mature –
                Being a man is living according to
                    God the Father's will in love.
                Being a man is showing love.
                Being a man is loving God first.
                Being a man is saying I love you because
                    Jesus is love –

                A marriage is to last a life-time –
                Faithfulness to one's vocation in
                    good times and bad times,
                    in sickness and in health.

                Being committed and showing it
                    in love –

                Fulfillment and promise given to
                    one's spouse –

                Letting your hair down – not hiding
                    behind a mask – so you never
                    trust anybody

                You never even show your real self
                    to anybody

                Living to prove you are perfect is a lie!

                Being a man is being converted to be
                    more and more like Christ –

                Loving mightily like Christ –
                    not never loving because
                    you trust NO-ONE –

                Fatherhood teaches men about loving
                    their wives –
                    Sacrifice for those they love –
                        wife and children –

                Fatherhood and Spouse teaches one
                    to love tenderly their
                    spouse and children –

                Opening doors to school chums,
                Opening doors to parents of
                    school chums –

                Involvement with neighbors in sports,
                    it starts in nursery school,
                    it is community at Church,
                    it is about belonging to
                    something bigger than the
                    family and
                    knowing trust and love in that.

                A Catholic man has to have an
                    interior life, but he is also
                    open and relating to others
                    outside his immediate family.

                Loving is to show mistakes and ask
                    forgiveness –

                Loving is living in the truth – who
                    can build a relationship
                    on lies, mistrust,
                    no consistency –
                    no commitment

                Loving is being under God –
                    being dependent on God –
                    being dependent on others for
                    help –
                    not trying to be everything so
                        you need NOBODY

 

 Matthew 25: 14-46

‘It is like a man about to go abroad who summoned his servants and entrusted his property to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to a third one, each in proportion to his ability. Then he set out on his journey. The man who had received the five talents promptly went and traded with them and made five more. The man who had received two made two more in the same way. But the man who had received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.  Now a long time afterwards, the master of those servants came back and went through his accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents came forward bringing five more. “Sir,” he said, “you entrusted me with five talents; here are five more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy servant; you have shown you are trustworthy in small things; I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” Next the man with the two talents came forward. “Sir,” he said, “you entrusted me with two talents; here are two more that I have made.” His master said to him, “Well done, good and trustworthy servant; you have shown you are trustworthy in small things; I will trust you with greater; come and join in your master’s happiness.” Last came forward the man who had the single talent. “Sir,” said he, “I had heard you were a hard man, reaping where you had not sown and gathering where you had not scattered; so I was afraid, and I went off and hid your talent in the ground. Here it is; it was yours, you have it back.” But his master answered him, “You wicked and lazy servant! So you knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered? Well then, you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have got my money back with interest.  So now, take the talent from him and give it to the man who has the ten talents.  For to everyone who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough; but anyone who has not, will be deprived even of what he has. As for this good–for–nothing servant, throw him into the darkness outside, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”

The Last Judgement

‘When the Son of man comes in his glory, escorted by all the angels, then he will take his seat on his throne of glory. All nations will be assembled before him and he will separate people one from another as the shepherd separates sheep from goats. He will place the sheep on his right hand and the goats on his left. Then the King will say to those on his right hand, "Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take as your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you made me welcome, lacking clothes and you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison and you came to see me." Then the upright will say to him in reply, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and make you welcome, lacking clothes and clothe you? When did we find you sick or in prison and go to see you?" And the King will answer, "In truth I tell you, in so far as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me." Then he will say to those on his left hand, "Go away from me, with your curse upon you, to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you never gave me food, I was thirsty and you never gave me anything to drink, I was a stranger and you never made me welcome, lacking clothes and you never clothed me, sick and in prison and you never visited me." Then it will be their turn to ask, "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty, a stranger or lacking clothes, sick or in prison, and did not come to your help?" Then he will answer, "In truth I tell you, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me." And they will go away to eternal punishment, and the upright to eternal life.’

 

                R. Talents are given from God –
                    not to be horded as things
                    that make a man think
                    he did it all himself –

                Talents are given to promote the Kingdom of God

                When Jesus was in need we fed Jesus,
                    we helped Jesus, we loved Jesus,
                    we trusted Jesus when we
                    did it to our brothers –

                What we do to others – we do
                    to Jesus –
 

1 Peter 1: 15

but as obedient children, be yourselves holy in all your activity, after the model of the Holy One who calls us, since scripture says, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’

 

2 Corinthians 12: 9

but he has answered me, ‘My grace is enough for you: for power is at full stretch in weakness.’ It is, then, about my weaknesses that I am happiest of all to boast, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me;

 

                R. Joseph shows us he supported
                    Mary and Jesus –
                    he wasn't selfish!

 

Through Him, With Him and In Him

 

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

From Chapter Four - The Sacraments and the Mass


       1) Interior Oblation

The first duty of man is to surrender himself to God out of love. This fact flows from the truth that God is the Creator and man is His creature. Man, if he is ideally to fulfill his creaturely role must respond as perfectly as possible to the loving demands of His Creator. God asks that man give himself completely to Himself. This is only proper since everything that man has, whether of the natural or supernatural order, has been given to him by God. Man, in turn, perfects himself by developing these various gifts according to God's will or, in other words, by giving himself completely to God. Man's gift of self to God is centered in loving conformity to the divine will. Consequently, one can understand why the will with its decision-making capacity is the crucial faculty in man, a point emphasized by contemporary thought.

     Man directs himself to God by the virtue of religion. This is not to say that this particular virtue ranks above the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity. These are the most excellent, since they unite man directly to God. We are merely stating that the virtue of religion directs all man's actions to the honor of God.6

     This virtue consists especially in acts of adoration, thanksgiving, petition and reparation. These interior acts can manifest themselves in many ways, but they are especially expressed through sacrifice. Here, then, we have the first constituent element of sacrifice: man's interior offering of himself to God. This giving takes place chiefly in man's will, under the guidance of the virtue of religion. This first element of sacrifice is of prime importance, for it deals with interior dispositions. This importance can be recognized concretely in the history of religion. For example, the Jewish people were convinced that the principal value of sacrifice was centered in the dispositions of the people.7


       2) Exterior Offering

Man is not a pure spirit. He is a rational animal, composed of body and soul. Consequently, he desires to manifest exteriorly and concretely the interior offering of himself which has been made to God in the first movement of sacrifice. He does this by the exterior offering to God of some material gift. Such a gift symbolizes the interior offering of man himself. St. Augustine says: "A visible sacrifice, therefore, is a sacrament or sacred sign of an invisible sacrifice."8

     Justification of this exterior oblation is also found in the fact that man is not only in part a corporeal being, but also a social being. It is fitting therefore that man exteriorize his interior gift of self in order that he may give worship to God in a social manner. For his exteriorization enables many to partake in the sacrificial ritual.

     This exteriorization of his inner offering also helps man to deepen his interior acts. Precisely because man is a composite being, his various exterior acts of worship can profoundly influence, among others, his interior acts of love, adoration, thanksgiving, reparation and petition.

     Here, then, we have the second constituent element of sacrifice: the external, ritual giving to God of some material gift which symbolizes man's interior offering of himself.


       3) Immolation of the Victim

In the history of religion there is contained a third element of sacrifice, that of immolation. In order to make the external offering worthy of God, man has been accustomed to accompany his offering with a ritual that removes the external gift from profane use. The victim is immolated so that its former existence might cease, and that it can thus become something sacred to God. This immolation should not be looked upon as a destruction, but as a fitting preparation of the external gift. Such a preparation is the negative element in the transferral process of the gift from profane use to divine ownership.9 But because the external gift symbolizes the gift of man himself, the consecration to God of this external gift through immolation represents the consecration of man himself to God. In other words, the immolation has a special significance by indicating man's union with God.

     Within this consideration of immolation it will be profitable for us to refer to three basic types of sacrifice common to the Jews of the Old Law. Such a consideration will have its special significance in our treatment of Christ's sacrifice. The three sacrifices in question are those of the paschal lamb, of the covenant, and of expiation or atonement. In our initial chapter we discussed the first two types. It is sufficient to recall here that each of these, through sacrificial blood, was instrumental in uniting the Jews with Yahweh as His people. The blood of the paschal lamb contributed to the Jewish exodus from Egypt, an exodus which attained upon Mount Sinai a central point of its progress toward the promised land. Here upon Mount Sinai the sacrifice of the covenant took place as the blood sealed the new life relationship between Yahweh and the Jews.

     In the sacrifice of expiation or atonement we again see the key role of sacrificial blood. In this sacrifice the blood was sprinkled seven times over the propitiatory. The purpose of this was to purify the sanctuary from all the sins of Israel. In turn the altar was sprinkled seven times with blood in order to achieve its purification and sanctification.

     The purpose of the sacrifice of expiation or atonement, then, was purification and divine reunion. The land of Israel together with the tabernacle, the altar, the sanctuary and the throne of Israel, had been stained by the sins of the Chosen People. Through these sins God had been driven from their midst. In the sacrifice of expiation God returns to Israel through the purification of the tabernacle. The tabernacle symbolized the souls of the Jews, so we note that God returns to a purified people. Here we see a simultaneity of purification and reunion.10

     Taking together these three main sacrifices of the pasch, covenant, and expiation, we see the role of the shedding of blood in the history of the Israelites. The shedding of blood purified and united to God, and indeed played a most positive role.


       4) Acceptance of the Sacrifice by God

In order that the sacrifice might reach its extrinsic consummation God on His part must accept it. God's acceptance of sacrifice has been shown in various ways. Among the Hebrews assurance of the divine acceptance was seen in the phenomenon of fire falling from heaven and consuming the victim of sacrifice. In the absence of such a heavenly token, there was at least some assurance that God accepted the sacrifice because of the duly consecrated altar itself. The altar received the gifts of sacrifice, and in doing so symbolized God's acceptance of the same.


       5) Partaking of the Sacrificial Victim

In the history of sacrifice men have habitually shown a desire to accept God's invitation to partake of the offered victim. God must invite men to participation in the sacrificial meal, for the victim of sacrifice becomes divine property, and the use of it contrary to the divine will is sacrilegious. If God is pleased to admit His friends to the divine banquet, this is a manifestation of the divine goodness.

     Since the victim has in a certain way become divine through its being offered to God, the partaking of this victim has a deep significance. Through such a participation in the divine banquet one shares in the sanctity of the victim.11 This sharing in the holiness of the victim is actually a participation in God's sanctity, since the victim is holy with the holiness of God to whom it has been offered.

     Thus the cycle of sacrifice has been completed. The interior giving on the part of those offering the sacrifice, exteriorized and symbolized by the ritual offering of an immolated victim, has brought down from on high a divine communication.

     We have briefly seen the general economy of sacrifice, the authenticity of which has been borne out by history. This structure of sacrifice is authentic because it is partly rooted in the very nature of man. At the same time, this structure has been modified by the demands of positive law. With this general structure of sacrifice serving as a background, we are now in a position to consider the sacrifice of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and finally, that of the Mass.

________
     5. F. X. Durrwell, The Resurrection (New York: Sheed & Ward, 1960), p. 59.
     6. St. Thomas Aquinas, S.T., II-II, q. 81, a. 4, ad 1.
     7. Cf. S. Lyonnet, "La Sotériologie Paulinienne" in Robert and Feuillet, Introduction à la Bible, Vol. II (Tournai, Belgium: Desclée, 1959), p. 874.
     8. St. Augustine, City of God (New York: Fathers of the Church, 1954), Vol. 14, p. 123.
     9. Cf. Durrwell, Op. cit., p. 61.
     10. Cf. Lyonnet, Op. cit., pp. 871-872.
     11. Cf. Durrwell, Op. cit., p. 126.

 

                September 23, 2014 - Feast of St. Pio

                R. Jesus healed and taught –

                Jesus was rejected in His own town –

                Jesus healed sick people –

                Jesus called the apostles –
                Jesus called them to be "fishers of men"

                Jesus taught and healed in Galilee
                He opened the ears of the deaf man –
                He healed the man who could not speak –

                Jesus gave us the Sermon on the Mount –
 

Matthew 5: 1-12

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 be great in heaven; this
is how they persecuted the prophets before you. 

 

                R. Jesus fed 5,000 with 2 fish and 5 loaves –
                Jesus calmed the storm –
                Jesus walked on the water –
                Jesus is transfigured and talked with
                    Moses and Elijah –

                Jesus helped a woman who was going to be
                    stoned because of adultery –

                Jesus shows us His love for all –

                Jesus loved men –

                By Jesus' nature He is loving –

                God is love –

                We receive an elevation in our capacity
                    to know and love in baptism –

                If we choose to be envious and angry
                    and jealous and seeking dominance
                    in our heart we become dark
                    and more tainted in our hearts –

                We choose what we think –

                We can pray to God to help us to love –
                    love is a theological virtue –
                    but it is an act of the will to
                    love and to forgive –

                We can focus on ourselves and be selfish or
                We can focus on being kind and going
                    out in love to others –

                We know the parable of the barren fig tree –

                When we are selfish we are not bearing
                    fruit for God's Kingdom

                God calls us and we can put Him off –
                    tell Him later God –
                    God isn't going to wait 1,000 years while
                        we ignore what we are being
                        called to do –
                    The barren fig tree bore no fruit –

                Jesus gave us parables to teach us –
                    the friend knocking – Jesus
                    teaches us to persevere in
                    prayers –

                God calls us to the banquet of the Lamb –
                    We have a free will –

                Others are called and we are to work with
                    them in the building of the
                    Kingdom and not be jealous, or
                    envious.

                We are responsible for our actions –
                We are accountable for our actions –

                When we do things it effects others –
                    when God calls us and we do
                    nothing we are acting –

                A man can be slothful – we hear
                    the parable of the talents –
                    the one man buried his talents –
   

John 14: 1-7

    Do not let your hearts be troubled. 
    You trust in God, trust also in me. 
    In my Father’s house 
        there are many places to live in; 
    otherwise I would have told you. 
    I am going now to prepare a place for you, 
    and after I have gone 
        and prepared you a place, 
    I shall return to take you to myself, 
    so that you may be with me 
    where I am. 
    You know the way 
        to the place where I am going. 

    Thomas said, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going, so how can we know the way?’ Jesus said: 

        I am the Way; I am Truth and Life. 
    No one can come to the Father 
        except through me. 
    If you know me, 
        you will know my Father too. 
    From this moment you know him 
        and have seen him. 

   

                R. Jesus healed and taught –

                He healed lepers and sick men, He
                    healed the cripples

                Jesus showed us His miraculous powers –

                Jesus ate with friends
                Jesus gives us the greatest commandment
   

Matthew 22: 34-40

But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees they got together and, to disconcert him, one of them put a question, 36 'Master, which is the greatest commandment of the Law?' Jesus said to him, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: You must love your neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments hang the whole Law, and the Prophets too.'

 

                R. Jesus was a servant –

                Jesus washed their feet –
     

Matthew 26: 26-29

The institution of the Eucharist

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had said the blessing he broke it and gave it to the disciples. ‘Take it and eat,’ he said, ‘this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he handed it to them saying, ‘Drink from this, all of you, for this is my blood, the blood of the covenant, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. From now on, I tell you, I shall never again drink wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in the kingdom of my Father.’

   

                R. Jesus is love

 

Luke 22: 41-44

Then he withdrew from them, about a stone’s throw away, and knelt down and prayed. ‘Father,’ he said, ‘if you are willing, take this cup away from me. Nevertheless, let your will be done, not mine.’ Then an angel appeared to him, coming from heaven to give him strength. In his anguish he prayed even more earnestly, and his sweat fell to the ground like great drops of blood.

 

                R. Jesus had enemies.
 

Matthew 26: 62-66

Jesus before the Sanhedrin

The high priest then rose and said to him, 'Have you no answer to that? What is this evidence these men are bringing against you?' But Jesus was silent. And the high priest said to him, 'I put you on oath by the living god to tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.' Jesus answered him, 'It is you who say it. But, I tell you that from this time onward you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.' Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, 'He has blasphemed. What need of witnesses have we now? There! You have just heard the blasphemy. What is your opinion? They answered, 'He deserves to die."

 

John 18: 33-38

    So Pilate went back into the Praetorium and called Jesus to him and asked him, ‘Are you the king of the Jews?’ Jesus replied, ‘Do you ask this of your own accord, or have others said it to you about me?’ Pilate answered, ‘Am I a Jew? It is your own people and the chief priests who have handed you over to me: what have you done?’ Jesus replied, ‘Mine is not a kingdom of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my men would have fought to prevent my being surrendered to the Jews. As it is, my kingdom does not belong here.’ Pilate said, ‘So, then you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘It is you who say that I am a king. I was born for this, I came into the world for this, to bear witness to the truth; and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice.’ ‘Truth?’ said Pilate. ‘What is that?’ And so saying he went out again to the Jews and said, ‘I find no case against him.

   

                R. Judas betrayed Jesus –

                Jesus loved Judas

                Judas was chosen an apostle by Jesus –

 

John 19: 25-27

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

 

                R. Mary stood at the foot of the cross –
   

Mary's Message
from the Rosary of August 27, 1996

Mary:  I stood beneath the cross of my Son, and my Heart was in such pain for I saw Him before my eyes. I saw Him covered with blood. I saw Him die. My Heart, my children, my Heart to watch my Son, but my Heart, my Heart, how I suffered for my little children of the world that give in to this world and give up the love of my Son. O my little children of light, I give you this message. Carry this light into the darkness for your Mother Mary, for I stood beneath the cross and I cried. I cried for the little ones. I cried for the young ones, the ones that do not care and will lose their souls. How do I make you see for you will not listen to me? What can I do? I come. I appear. I beg. I plead. I give you these gifts from my Son, and you reject me. I do not deliver messages very often anymore for I have been ignored. The message is the same. You do not read the messages I have given to you. Please help me. Help the little children. I appear. I appear. I appear, and I am ignored. I stood beneath the cross, and I cried. I cried, and my Heart was in such anguish for my little children, for I am searching for them this day as I searched for the Child Jesus. Please, please help me. I cannot hold back the hand of my Son any longer. I am Mary, your Mother. I ask you to help my children. You are my children of light.

end of Mary's Message

   

                R. Darkness was over the land –

                Jesus died

                Jesus was put in the tomb

                The women find the empty tomb

                Jesus rose from the dead –

 

Luke 24: 1-8

On the first day of the week, at the first sign of dawn, they went to the tomb with the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb, but on entering they could not find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled about this, two men in brilliant clothes suddenly appeared at their side. Terrified, the women bowed their heads to the ground. But the two said to them, ‘Why look among the dead for someone who is alive? He is not here; he has risen. Remember what he told you when he was still in Galilee: that the Son of man was destined to be handed over into the power of sinful men and be crucified, and rise again on the third day.’ And they remembered his words.


   

 

John 20: 14-18

As she said this she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, though she did not realise that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and remove him.’ Jesus said, ‘Mary!’ She turned round then and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbuni!’—which means Master. Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to the brothers, and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ So Mary of Magdala told the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord,’ and that he had said these things to her.

   

                R. Thomas did not believe –

                Jesus made fish for them

 


   

Luke 24: 50-53

Then he took them out as far as the outskirts of Bethany, and raising his hands he blessed them. Now as he blessed them, he withdrew from them and was carried up to heaven. They worshipped him and then went back to Jerusalem full of joy; and they were continually in the Temple praising God.


                     

Excerpt from Response to God's Love by Father Edward Carter, S.J., pp. 67-68

The millions and millions of people the world over make up what might be called the world community. The members of this cosmic community are supposed to live in a basic love for one another, united in bonds of mutual support and interdependence. This is true because God has created persons as social beings. We are not intended to cut an isolated path through life. We are meant to walk hand in hand with each other, to live within a societal structure, to help others in many different ways. What is more, we must also realize that, in achieving our destiny, we receive much aid, support, and love from others. There are all too many striking examples of how the modern world has failed to live community—more than enough to make us agonize over man's inhumanity toward his fellow human beings. But there are also many beautiful and ongoing examples of how the world has succeeded in living community—enough to strengthen our belief in the basic goodness of the human heart.

 

From the Priestly Newsletter January/February 1995

Reflections on Love

The above thoughts give us an occasion to offer various reflections on love:
  • He was consistently motivated by love. In the end He was literally consumed by love, for it led Him to a place called Calvary. He was brutally nailed to a cross and raised up midst the laughter and ridicule of enemies. He hung there, bruised and beaten, His body smeared with blood. There was the flush of fever mixed with the chill of approaching death. The greatest physical suffering was surpassed only by an unfathomable anguish of spirit. It was a terrible scene, yet one permeated with a haunting beauty which came forth from the magnificent love of His Heart. His crucified figure, silhouetted against a darkening sky, is the everlasting reminder that to live is to love, and that to love involves not only joy, but also suffering.
  • We are great because of what we are, and we are to the extent that we love God and neighbor.
  • Love is sensitive. It is delicately aware of the loved one’s needs. Moreover, love’s sensitivity is blended with a strength and durability which allows it to endure pain, hardship, and difficulty for the beloved.
  • Love is sensitive, not only regarding those few especially loved in close personal relationships. Love is sensitive also regarding all others, especially the poor and underprivileged and those whom the world passes by as unimportant, the sick and the lame also, and likewise all those who seem especially weighed down by the burden of life.
  • When love fails, it does not remain mired in discouragement. It resolves to learn from past mistakes and henceforth to love more selflessly, more deeply, more tenderly.
  • Why are we sometimes afraid of God’s love? We shy away from the white heat of His love, foolishly thinking He will ask too much of us. When has He ever asked for something too difficult? When has He ever asked anything without giving us abundant grace to accomplish His desire? When has His love ever asked that which has not brought us closer to Him, thus enhancing our happiness?
  • Jesus loves us with an overwhelming love. Why do we at times find it difficult to love ourselves? Jesus sees our failings, but also all the good we do with the help of His grace. He also sees our capacity for achieving ever greater good. Why do we at times become depressed at what we are not, rather than being encouraged at what God has helped us to be?
  • A number of years ago an educator wrote the following. Perhaps what he said then is even more applicable today: “I could not even begin to count the men and women whom I have met in my work who testify, with great sadness, that their formation/education both at home and at school was almost completely in terms of achievement, of doing, of performing according to standards, of accomplishing certain narrow goals, but hardly ever in terms of being, of growing, of loving.”2
  • When loving God and neighbor becomes difficult and painful, there is a temptation to turn in a non-love direction which deceptively appears to be free of pain and suffering. Pursuing such a path, however, is a dead-end street where one painfully suffocates in selfish self-enclosement.
  • Although love must be firm when necessary, it is also gentle. Love does not further crush the bruised personality, but helps the other to heal and grow through tenderness and affirmation.
  • Love can cause one to weep. Sometimes the tears are caused by joy, at other times by pain.
  • Love helps a person to be enthusiastic about life, sometimes ecstatically so, more often quietly so.
  • Jesus has told us to focus on love. Is it not strange that we Christians, who call ourselves His followers, can at times so easily allow other concerns to dominate our consciousness?
  • The bloated stomachs of starving children, the tragedies of broken homes, the rat-infected ghettoes, the drug scene with its dreadful number of ruined lives, city streets engraved with an alarmingly increasing list of murders, rapes, and muggings—when love sees all of this, it weeps. Love not only weeps, however. It also acts.
  • “If I have all the eloquence of men or of angels, but speak without love, I am simply a gong booming or a cymbal clashing. If I have the gift of prophecy, understanding all the mysteries there are, and knowing everything, and if I have faith in all its fullness, to move mountains, but without love, then I am nothing at all. If I give away all that I possess, piece by piece, and if I even let them take my body to burn it, but am without love, it will do me no good whatever” (1 Cor 13: 1-3).

 

Editor's Corner

by Edward Carter S. J.

he New Year, with its connotations of newness, is an occasion to remind ourselves that Christ has come to give us newness of life. Indeed, in Christ, we are new creatures: “And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here.” (2 Cor 5:17).

As we begin the New Year, we have an appropriate opportunity to resolve to live this newness of life Jesus has given us at a deeper level. Another way of putting this is to say that the inception of the New Year gives us an opportunity to resolve to avoid spiritual mediocrity. Let’s resolve to live each day of the New Year—and all the days of the rest of our lives—at the deepest spiritual level possible. Jesus comes to us anew each day with the invitation to enter into His life ever more deeply. Let’s resolve not to waste these daily invitations of Our Lord. If we respond each day to Jesus’ call to come closer to Him that day, we will avoid spiritual mediocrity. We will be gradually opening ourselves more and more to the immense, personal love which Jesus has for each one of us. We will be giving ourselves to Christ with an ever greater love. We will be experiencing peace and joy in ever greater measure—for peace and joy are the two chief fruits of love.

 

Pope John Paul II on Faithfulness

The Holy Father offers us some very meaningful words on the subject of faithfulness. Faithfulness, of course, is one of the chief characteristics of love: “Virgo fidelis, the faithful Virgin. What does this faithfulness of Mary mean? What are the dimensions of this faithfulness? The first dimension is called search. Mary was faithful first of all when she began, lovingly, to seek the deep sense of God’s plan in her and for the world. ‘Quomodo fiet? How shall this be?’, she asked the Angel of the Annunciation.

“The second dimension of faithfulness is called reception, acceptance. The quomodo fiet is changed, on Mary’s lips, to a fiat, ‘Let it be done, I am ready, I accept.’ This is the moment in which man perceives that he will never completely understand the ‘how’; that there are in God’s plan more areas of mystery than of clarity; that, however he may try, he will never succeed in understanding it completely…

“The third dimension of faithfulness is consistency to live in accordance with what one believes; to adapt one’s life to the object of one’s adherence. To accept misunderstanding, persecutions, rather than a break between what one practices and what one believes; this is consistency…

“But all faithfulness must pass the most exacting test, that of duration. Therefore, the fourth dimension of faithfulness is constancy. It is easy to be consistent for a day or two. It is difficult and important to be consistent for one’s whole life. It is easy to be consistent in the hour of enthusiasm. It is difficult to be so in the hour of tribulation.”4

2. Michael Lawrence, C.SS.P., You Have to Love to Teach, Ligourian, September 1974, p.4.
4. Pope John Paul II, Inside the Vatican, December, 1994, pp. 29-39.

 

From the Priestly Newsletter July/August 1995

Each day we are called to imitate Jesus in His act of Self-giving. We, too, are called to lay down our lives for the flock. Relatively few priests in the course of the Church’s history have been called to lay down their lives in physical martyrdom. All priests, though, have been and are called to lay down their lives for the flock by giving themselves in loving service according to the Father’s will.
Our act of self-giving occurs within the framework of common everydayness. We grow in Christian holiness within the framework of everyday life or we don’t grow at all. This is such an obvious statement. It is one of those self-evident truths, a truth which no logical person would begin to challenge. Isn’t it strange, then, that we can rather often fail to live this truth? Inexplicably, we so often seem to think that our real opportunity for growth in holiness—for self-giving in love—is not the opportunity which is everyday, but that opportunity which is in a kind of no man’s land, an ethereal kind of opportunity removed from the ordinary pains and struggles and joys of everyday living, a nebulous opportunity which our hazy thinking really cannot pinpoint when we reflect upon the matter.
Our problem, then, is not that there is lacking ample opportunity for self-giving in love, for growth in holiness. Our problem rather is that we have a tendency to want different opportunities than everydayness presents.

Our task is to allow faith, hope, and love to be more vital, more operative, day-by-day, everyday. The more mature our Christian faith, hope, and love become, the more we will look upon each day as a renewed opportunity for self-giving in union with Jesus. We will increasingly come to see with a clearer vision that the opportunities for growth in priestly holiness, for growth in union with Jesus, Chief Shepherd of the Flock, are inserted deeply and firmly within the framework of everydayness. Yes, that’s where they exist, and in bountiful measure.

 

From the Priestly Newsletter 2000 Issue 3

Serving Others

Our participation in Jesus’ death-resurrection includes our service of love to others.

In rarer moments of heroic reflection, we perhaps have dreamed of sensational ways through which we may be called to lay down our lives for our neighbor. For most of us, however, such opportunities will probably never occur, and this is just as well. Our courage could well be far less in a real situation than it is in the inflated proportions of dreamlike musings. Most people perform much better in the less heroic atmosphere of everyday sameness. Yet each day, so ordinarily similar to both the one which has preceded and the one which will follow, offers constant opportunities for the laying down of one’s life for others. If these daily opportunities are less sensational than the more heroic occasions, they are much more numerous and therefore much more consistently present as possibilities for serving others.

Dying daily for others means many things. It means curbing those persistent, selfish tendencies which, if left unchecked, gradually narrow our vision so that we hardly think of anyone but ourselves. Dying daily for others means working at being kind and patient—seemingly little things, but immensely important in maintaining a spirit of harmony in the course of human affairs. Dying daily for others means fidelity to our work, even though this fidelity must be expressed amid temptations such as discouragement, laziness, and disinterest. Dying daily for our neighbor means these and many other things, some of which we all share in common, some of which are peculiar to each person’s uniqueness. One of these common elements is this: dying for others in daily and varied fashion is an expression of our present concern while at the same time it increases our capacity for future love.

Jesus, of course, is our great exemplar regarding the service of others: “You know that among the pagans the rulers lord it over them, and their great men make their authority felt. This is not to happen among you. No; anyone who wants to be great among you must be your servant, and anyone who wants to be first among you must be your slave, just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt 20:25-28).

 

 

 

Novena al Espiritu Santo  English

Novena al Espiritu Santo  Español

Novena al Espiritu Santo  Français

Novena al Espiritu Santo  Português

Novena al Espiritu Santo  Italiano

Novena al Espiritu Santo  Polska

 

Excerpt from November 4, 2001

Jesus speaks:  To those who pray My prayers I
                        promise the following special
                        graces:

                                 - A deeper understanding of the 
                                     Divine Mysteries through fervent
                                     recitation of the litanies.

                                 - I promise a deeper love in your heart
                                     for your God and a deeper love
                                     for your fellowmen.

                                 - Those who pray the prayers fervently
                                    will experience a deep union 
                                    in My Heart and My Mother's heart,
                                    they will be given special insights
                                    into My unfathomable love for men
                                    and experience a thirsting within
                                    themselves to want to help souls
                                    through intercessory prayer and sacrifices.

                                 - They will have a deeper love of the Mass
                                    through this deeper consecration.
                                    [consecration to Their Hearts]

                                 - They will know Me more intimately.

                                 - They will want to live their lives to 
                                    help save souls.

                                 - They will have a deeper love for the priests shepherds.
                                 - They will have a deeper love and dedication
                                    to the Church. (I founded)

                                 - They will want peace on the earth.
                                 - They will want peace in their own hearts.

                                 - You will experience a fearlessness the more
                                    you pray the Holy Spirit Novena prayers
                                    given to you.

                                 - As you meditate on the scriptures you will
                                    understand more fully the plan of
                                    the Father to lead the souls into the
                                    great Reign of My Sacred Heart.

                                 - You and all who pray the Holy Spirit Novena
                                    and the Shepherds of Christ Prayers will be
                                    united in a deep oneness with each other
                                    and the souls of the earth.

                                 - The more you pray these prayers (both sets)
                                    you will live in the truth as you
                                    dwell in Our Hearts.

                                  - You will be given gifts of the Holy Spirit.

                                  - You and your family will be protected by
                                    My Precious Blood and your families
                                    will receive special protection
                                    against satan from fervent recitation
                                    of the prayers. (the Holy Spirit Novena
                                    and the Shepherds of Christ Prayers)

                                 - I promise to take you and the members of
                                    your family in a special way
                                    into My Sacred Heart. I will lavish
                                    you in the fires of My love.

                                 - The priests and the people of the Church and the world
                                    will receive special graces from the fervent
                                    recitation of these prayers. (both sets)

                                 - I will unite My people in a deeper love
                                    from the graces granted from
                                    fervent recitation of these prayers.

                                 - I give these prayers from My image site
                                    in Florida.
                                   I appear there daily as the Sacred Heart.
                                   Some see Me, some do not, but there
                                    is a special presence there.
                                   My Mother appears there for her children.

                                 - In the five years of her apparitions many
                                    souls who have come have been
                                    given special graces of conversion.
                                    Many have been given grace to lead
                                    them into a deeper love union with
                                    God and the Blessed Virgin.

                                 - The image site in Florida has touched
                                    the world.

                                 - I outpour great grace to those who come
                                    to the site.

                                 - There are tremendous graces of healing
                                    granted to all who come.

                                 - People who come rarely leave unchanged.
                                 - The grace granted works in their lives and in
                                    their hearts, long after they have gone.

                                 - A reminder of their visit only need be given
                                    and they experience a memory of
                                    that moment.

                                I ask you to circulate the prayers I have
                                    given, the Shepherds of Christ Prayers 
                                    and the Holy Spirit Novena prayers.

End of excerpt from November 4, 2001

   

 

                Given March 21, 2014

                R. Pray for These Things

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

 

 

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cardinals, bishops)
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Dan called and gave the report to me, when I hung up I saw this rainbow and took a picture for him.

 

 

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