Sep 1 Sun - Do I want what God wants?

 

Sep 1 Sun
Do I want what God wants? Can only a few be holy?
God looks after us throughout the day, hour by hour, helping us grow in holiness. He is always there, like a loving Father, ready to comfort and support us. Every day, we need to renew our desire to be holy. We become saints precisely through our work and daily duties. We should always be prepared to live our simple life as God intends, so that we can lovingly elevate the ordinary events of our day to a supernatural level and make them apostolically fruitful.

Saint Chantal was married and had six children. After her husband passed away, she performed many good works for the poor and the sick. She then founded the Order of the Visitation and led it wisely.

One day, she asked, "My dear daughters, most of the saints were not martyrs. Why do you think that is?"

After each nun shared her thoughts, she continued, "I believe it is because there is a martyrdom of love: God keeps His children alive to carry out their ordinary lives, full of love, for His glory, and this makes them martyrs and saints. I know this is the kind of martyrdom my daughters must endure."

One sister wanted to understand how this martyrdom would manifest in practice.
– "Give God your unconditional love and consent," she replied, "and then you will find out. He will be present in your soul, and, like a sharp sword, He will separate you from your self-centered pursuits."

Another sister asked how long this martyrdom would likely last.
– "From the moment we wholeheartedly surrender ourselves to God until the moment we die," she answered. "But this applies to generous hearts who remain faithful to love and do not retract their offering. Our Lord does not bother to make martyrs out of weak hearts and those with little love and constancy. He simply lets them continue in their own irrelevant ways. He waits, in case they give up and return to Him; He never forces our free will."

She was asked if this martyrdom of love is as painful as physical martyrdom.
– "We should not compare, but the martyrdom of love is no less painful than the physical kind because love is as strong as death, and martyrs of love suffer infinitely more by remaining alive and fulfilling God's will than if they were to give up their lives for their faith and endure suffering for a few moments."

For a child of God who views things from a supernatural perspective, the ordinary setbacks of the day provide an opportunity to draw closer to God, increase our spirit of sacrifice, and to improve in specific areas of our lives. This is how we can clearly demonstrate that our self-surrender is genuine and based on love. "How many people, who would willingly be nailed to a cross before the amazed gaze of thousands of spectators, cannot bear the daily annoyances with a Christian spirit! Think about which is more heroic." St. Josemaría

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Aug 31 Sat - Can I say that God’s Wisdom rules the universe and keeps it in order?

 

Aug 31 Sat
Can I say that God’s Wisdom rules the universe and keeps it in order?
The world, like the masterpiece of an artist, is marked by the signature of its Creator. We receive the gifts of God and can take them for granted: our lives, our family, the world, our intelligence, friends... everything! But some people do not bother to find out where all these come from and why they have been granted to them.

In Jules Verneʹs novel “The Mysterious Island” he describes a group of men shipwrecked on an unknown island in the Pacific. They believed themselves to be alone but at critical moments they received help: a toolbox; a rope hanging from a rock; enemies exterminated... However, they didn’t know where it came from, or who was helping them.

One night, finding themselves lost at sea after an exploration to a nearby island, they saw a bonfire from afar that served as a beacon to guide them back. This fire saved their lives. The seafarers believed that the fire had been lit by their leader, who had remained on land. But later they discover that it wasn’t him.

The main character of the novel tries to find the mysterious helper, but some others don’t care who provides that help; they just benefit from it without asking questions.

As in Verneʹs novel, some people see the world, but don’t bother to ask “Who made it?” After all, ʹnothing comes from nothingʹ. If we find a football in the jungle, we wonder how it ended up there; we need an explanation because we know that footballs don’t grow on trees. A human soul –capable of loving and thinking– is to the material universe what a football is to a jungle. It does not come spontaneously into it.

Towards the end of the adventure, the main character says: ʺWhat I do know is that a beneficent hand has constantly protected us since our arrival on the island, that we all owe our lives to this good, generous, and powerful being.ʺ He did not stop searching and eventually he found his benefactor.

In the face of the unexpected and unforeseen, we may initially be disconcerted. However, we should quickly try to recognize our Lord, who once again tells us: “Take heart, it is I; have no fear." Peace and calm should be constant features of our lives. “Have no anxiety about anything. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Trusting in Providence brings cheerfulness as well as peace. Thus, the source of our optimism and cheerfulness should be the awareness that we are children of God.

Mary, Mother of the Creator, help men to encourage everyone never to stop looking for the reason behind everything, searching for the Truth. What we are looking for is happiness; not a momentary happiness, but one that is deep and forever, and both human and supernatural.

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Aug 30 Fri - Why is the Lord silent?

 

Aug 30 Fri
Why is the Lord silent?
The summer of our Lord's second year of public life draws near. The latest miracles at the lakeside, the spectacular multiplication of the loaves and fishes, the great promise of the Eucharist, have all failed to move the hard hearts of the Jewish leaders. And Jesus, exhausted, goes off with the Apostles to Gentile territory to find a quiet place to rest.

The inhabitants of that quiet countryside overlooking the sea regard our Lord as just another stranger. Nevertheless, some have heard stories about the great prophet from Galilee traveling all over Palestine, curing many diseases and afflictions. The word spreads from house to house and along the shore. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and cried, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely possessed by a demon."

The action of the Canaanite woman is a wonderful lesson in daring petition. Spurred on by her daughter's pitiful plight, she leaves no stone unturned: she runs, she seeks, she enquires, until eventually she finds the Master and tells him the reason for her anguish. It is her love that causes her to cry out as she does.

There is an air of expectation among Christ's followers. Jesus is the only hope the woman has of seeing her daughter cured, and the anguish in her voice reveals the pain in her soul. But he did not answer her a word.

Christ is silent. It is not hardness of heart. Our Lord often tests our faith like this, because he wishes to strengthen us in the conviction that without Him, we can do nothing. Christ's lack of responsiveness here reveals his infinite love, which seeks to make the motive of our perseverance more supernatural. At times, Jesus keeps silent; he allows us to feel like strangers and exiles. “We may even imagine that our Lord does not hear us; that we are being deluded, that all we hear is the monologue of our own voice. We find ourselves, as it were, without support on earth and abandoned by heaven." It may seem to us that the Gospel scene is being repeated in our lives.

The Canaanite woman doesn't get discouraged. She begs him again and again. At times, when we want something really important, our Lord wants us to pray for it for many years: a prayer composed of supplication and work, of striving to fulfill his commandments and abandonment to his merciful designs; a prayer of our entire existence, which makes us more humble and draws us closer to Christ, because we discover that he is our only recourse.

Even so, we must pray even though it may seem that God is not listening to our plea.
“Everything has its time. Our Lord knows perfectly well what our needs are, yet he wants us to ask with the same persistence as the people in the Gospel."
“Ask the same way they did: they asked him for everything.”

Aug 29 Thu - What can I give to the Lord?

 

Aug 29 Thu
What can I give to the Lord?
The Gospel tells us about the miracle of the loaves and fishes (cf. Jn 6:1-15). A miracle, that is a “sign”, a “sign”, whose protagonists perform three gestures that Jesus will come to repeat at the Last Supper. What are these gestures? Offering, giving thanks, and sharing.

The first: TO OFFER. The Gospel tells us about a boy who has five loaves and two fish (Jn 6:9). It is the gesture with which we acknowledge we have something good to give, and we say our “yes”, even if what we have is too little compared to what is needed. This is emphasized, during the Mass, when the priest offers the bread and wine on the altar, and each person offers himself, his own life.

It is a gesture that may seem small, when we think of the immense needs of humanity, just like the five loaves and two fish in front of a crowd of thousands; but God makes it the material for the miracle, the greatest miracle there is – that in which He makes Himself present among us, for the salvation of the world.

 And so, we understand the second gesture: GIVING THANKS (cf. Jn 6:11). The first gesture is offering, and the second is giving thanks. It is saying to the Lord humbly, with also with joy: “All that I have is your gift, Lord, and to thank you I can only give back to you what You gave me first, together with your Son Jesus Christ, adding what I can; every one of us can add a little something.

What can I give to the Lord? What little thing can I give? My feeble love”. To give… to say to the Lord, “I love you”; but we, poor things, our love is so small, but if we give it to the Lord, the Lord receives it.

Offering, giving thanks, and the third gesture is SHARING. Within the Mass, there is the Communion, when together we approach the altar to receive the Body and Blood of Christ: the fruit of everyone’s gift transformed by the Lord into food for all. It is a beautiful moment, that of communion, which teaches us to live every gesture of love as a gift of grace, both for those who give it and those who receive it.

Let us ask ourselves: Do I truly believe that, by the grace of God, I have something unique to give to my brothers and sisters, or do I feel anonymously “one among many”? Am I active in giving good? Am I grateful to the Lord for the gifts with which He continuously manifests His love? Do I live sharing with others as a moment of encounter and mutual enrichment? May the Virgin Mary help us to live every Eucharistic celebration with faith, and to recognize and savor every day the “miracles” of God’s grace.
Pope Francis.
Today is the Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist

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Aug 28 Wed - Is faith just a collection of truths to be believed?

 

Aug 28 Wed
Is faith just a collection of truths to be believed?
Faith involves both the ‘fides qua creditur’ (the faith with which one believes) and the ‘fides quae creditur’ (the faith which one believes, the content of the faith). There is a profound unity between the act by which we believe and the content to which we give our assent.

Saint Luke recounts that, Paul went on the Sabbath to proclaim the Gospel to some women; among them was Lydia and “the Lord opened her heart to give heed to what was said by Paul” (Acts 16:14). Thus, knowing the content to be believed is not sufficient unless the heart, the authentic sacred space within the person, is opened by grace that allows the eyes to see below the surface and to understand that what has been proclaimed is the word of God.

Confessing with the lips implies public testimony and commitment. A Christian may never think of belief as a private act. Faith is choosing to stand with the Lord so as to live with him. This “standing with him” points towards an understanding of the reasons for believing. Faith, precisely because it is a free act, also demands social responsibility for what one believes.

The Church on the day of Pentecost, strengthened by the gift of the Holy Spirit, demonstrates this public dimension of believing and proclaiming one’s faith fearlessly to every person.

Profession of faith is an act both personal and communitarian. It is the Church that primarily believes. In the faith of the Christian community, each individual receives baptism.

“I believe” is the faith of the Church professed personally by each believer. “We believe” is the faith of the Church confessed by the bishops assembled in council or more generally by the liturgical assembly of believers. And the Church, our mother, teaches us to say both “I believe” and “we believe.”

Evidently, knowledge of the content of faith is essential for giving one’s own assent, that is to say for adhering fully with intellect and will to what the Church proposes. Knowledge of faith opens a door into the fullness of the saving mystery revealed by God. The giving of assent implies that, when we believe, we freely accept the whole mystery of faith, because the guarantor of its truth is God who reveals himself and allows us to know his mystery of love.

Yet many are still sincerely searching for the ultimate meaning and definitive truth of their lives and of the world. This search is an authentic “preamble” to the faith, because it guides people onto the path that leads to the mystery of God. Human reason, in fact, bears within itself a demand for “what is perennially valid and lasting.” This demand constitutes a permanent summons, indelibly written into the human heart, to set out to find the One whom we would not be seeking had he not already set out to meet us. To this encounter, faith invites us and it opens us in fullness.
Excerpts from Benedict XVI, Porta Fidei.
Pic: St Paul baptizes Lydia, the purple cloth dealer.

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Aug 27 Tue - Four physical abilities that are also very useful for the soul.

 

Aug 27 Tue
Four physical abilities that are also very useful for the soul.
Taking care of the body helps to take care of the soul.
Physical virtues bring health to our bodies. Moral virtues strengthen and guide our will to choose what is authentically good and beautiful and by aiding our relationship with God.

The abilities exercised in sport can be equally applied to the spiritual life.
Training the four elementary skills (strength, speed, endurance and flexibility), not only helps physical well-being, but also spiritual development. Both sides must grow harmoniously.

Some make their training charts without skipping any activities, but are still "too busy" for God. They find an hour every day to exercise, but don't seem to have time to go to Mass on Sundays.

There are four skills help develop the body, and improve the soul.

1. Strength.
God has given us the ability to use our body. Pushing the body further through exercise can increase strength and decrease injury.
The more the muscles are developed, the less chance there is of injury. It is the same with the soul; the more we toughen our character, the easier to avoid falling into temptations. Even if they keep coming, they will not control us.

2. Speed.
Speed training develops the ability to do intense physical activity in a short period of time. It exercises the lungs, heart, and muscle fibers like no other type of training.
The fight against temptation becomes more difficult when one delays to ask for the help of God's grace; so, speed training should not be neglected in order to react, right away, and avoid falling into temptations.

3. Resistance.
By gaining muscular and cardiovascular resistance, patience and willpower are also exercised.
In life there will always be moments of greater difficulty that may weaken faith in God and humanity; we must have patience, resist, and seek solutions.

4. Flexibility.
By training this ability, we will improve muscular functions and prevent injuries.
The human being possesses two facets: one that conforms to objective truth (justice) and another guided by love and compassion (charity). Both facets can coexist in balance thanks to flexibility.

Did you know that sport and a healthy lifestyle provide a great opportunity to grow in virtues?
Body and soul should not compete. Some may eat unhealthy food because "the physical is less important than the spiritual." They shy away from physical exertion saying: "God doesn't care what I look like."

To grow spiritually, we need exercise, proper rest, and a healthy diet.

       - Exercise: which is mortification that purifies both body and soul.

       - Rest: which is "rest in the Lord," prayer. We need rest in order to continue growing.

       - Nourishment: which is the Eucharist; to grow, and keep the "temple of the Spirit" standing. You are what you eat!

By taking care of the body and the soul, we show respect for God who made us in his image and likeness and who loves us so much.

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Aug 26 Mon - Should I have fear of God?

 

Aug 26 Mon
Should I have fear of God?

The word we translated as 'awe' or fear throughout the Bible is the Hebrew word yiráh (יראה, pronounced "yir-áh"), which can also be translated as devotion, respect, reverence and worship.

But yiráh also means ‘fear of the Lord’. Moses was filled with fear (yiráh) when he begged God to be able to see His glory, and could not behold it, lest he should die.

The Israelites were filled with fear (yiráh) when Moses came down Mount Sinai. I grew up thinking that to "fear the Lord" meant to be scared of Him. But as I was in real awe of a stunning sunset, I didn’t feel fear. I felt awe and wanted to worship the Creator. I felt yiráh! Proverbs 9:10 says: “The fear –yiráh– of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom… If you know God, the Holy One, you will understand what is right.”

The best way to regain our sense of awe is to follow God’s instructions (1 John 5:3). Jesus expressed its components, as two simple things: Love God, and love others. Do this… and we can regain our awe in God.

“The fear of God is holy.' This fear is the veneration a son has for his Father; never a servile fear, because your Father-God is not a tyrant."

“I don't like to speak of fear, for the Christian is moved by the charity of God, which has been shown to us in Christ and teaches us to love all men and the whole of creation. However, we should speak about being responsible, about being serious. "’Make no mistake about it; you cannot cheat God,’ the Apostle Paul warns us."

Thus, be consistent. Do you realize that the ‘fear of the Lord’ is expressed with our actions, by being ‘afraid’ of offending God? … by avoiding anything which may displease God? When was the last time you felt so moved by a sense of awe that all you could do was to thank God, to worship Him?

“It hurts me to see the danger of lukewarmness in which you place yourself when you do not strive seriously for perfection in your state in life.”
Say with me: “I don't want to be lukewarm! My God, pierce thou my flesh with thy fear: grant me a filial fear that will make me react!"

Lord, – say it with a contrite heart – may I never offend you again ... And do not think you are disqualified because sometimes you feel also fear; that fear comes because you know God wants you to be a saint, and you do not strive to be a saint.

The fear of God leads us to make good use of His grace. "’We beg you not to offer God's grace an unsuccessful welcome’. Yes, God's grace can fill us, provided we do not close the doors of our heart. We must be well-disposed; we must really want to change; we cannot play with God's grace.” St. Josemaría

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Aug 25 Sun - Whom shall I serve?

 

Aug 25 Sun
Whom shall I serve?
Today, in the First Reading we see that Joshua asked the Israelites to declare whom they would serve. They decided this based on their experience with the Lord who freed them from Egyptian slavery, performed wonders, and protected them during their forty-year exile in the desert.
We, too, need to experience God in some way if we are to serve him. Thus, we understand God’s promise to deliver us in light of Christ and our own resurrection.

The Responsorial Psalm outlines what the just man, that is, the one who chooses God, can expect. God often asks hard things of us: “Many are the troubles of the just one.” We are just if we choose the Lord and take truth and justice as our standards.
It is better to endure difficulties, even crushing ones, with the Lord, than to enjoy the fleeting happiness of the devil.
Those who are close to the Lord retain a peace and joy even while suffering.

Each person has to decide what his way of life will be. Thus, Jesus asks the disciples if they, too, will go away.

He had told them: “It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail."

Flesh and spirit. The truth about the Eucharist that Our Lord reveals is not a natural truth (coming from the flesh) that unaided reason can discover (like honor your father and mother) but a supernatural truth. It can only be known if it is revealed by God (through the Spirit). In addition, we need the grace of Christ to assent to it.

In the case of the faithful apostles, this grace seems to come from their personal encounter with Jesus. They trusted Our Lord, so they could believe the words he spoke.

Pope Francis writes: “I invite all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them; I ask all of you to do this unfailingly each day.”

This is what we need. We can encounter Christ in several ways, but most especially in the Eucharist.

Today, we will recite the Creed, at the end of which we will say “Amen.”
Then a little later, after the celebrant repeats Christ’s words which instituted the New Covenant, at the end of the Eucharistic Prayer, we will say together the Great Amen. Even later, when we receive Holy Communion, we will respond with another “Amen.” These “amens” say to Christ “Yes, I believe, I trust in you, You will be faithful to your word."

Let’s let these amens and all the amens of this next week be renewals of our commitment to the New Covenant, to follow Christ closely, every day.

Our commitment must be to love God above all things, and to desire the true good of our neighbor.

Who is my neighbor? Charity begins at home and spreads outward. My neighbor is my spouse, parents, children, relatives, friends, neighbors, and anyone in need that I can serve.

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Aug 24 Sat - What is it to take a leap of faith?

 Aug 24 Sat
What is it to take a leap of faith?
There is a novel written by Graham Greene in 1951. The story is set in London during and after the Second World War, focusing on the affair between Maurice Bendrix and Sarah Miles. Sarah is married to Henry Miles, an influential English civil servant. Eventually, Sarah decides to end the affair.

Two years after their breakup, Bendrix discovers the reason for Sarah's decision while reading her diary. This revelation marks a significant turning point in the story, shedding light on Sarah's complex character.

It is revealed that during their affair, a bomb explodes in Bendrix's apartment. In that moment of anguish, Sarah makes a promise to God: If He saves him, she promises to end the illicit relationship, if He spares Bendrix's life.

Miraculously, Bendrix survives the explosion, although the damage to his apartment is extensive. Neither Bendrix nor Sarah were believers, but Sarah's instinct to pray for her lover's life is undeniable: "I love him and I will do anything as long as You allow him to live. I will say it very slowly: I will leave him forever if You allow him to live, and give him a chance...And then he appeared at the door; he was alive, and I thought: Now begins the agony of having to live without him."

Sarah struggles to keep her promise, torn between her love for Bendrix and her commitment to God. She attends talks by a rationalist, hoping to convince herself that God does not exist, and that there is no afterlife – that all that matters is living in the present. However, instead of erasing her faith, these encounters strengthen it. Sarah decides to convert to Catholicism and discovers the love, compassion, and suffering of God: "You could have killed us with happiness, but you preferred that we reach You through pain." The moral aspect of human existence becomes more apparent to her, urging her to strive for goodness and avoid evil.

Unfortunately, Sarah dies prematurely, leaving Bendrix unable to come to terms with her passing. He begins to sense the presence of God in his own life. "Because if this God exists," he thinks, "and if even you, Sarah – with your desires, infidelity, and small lies – could change so much, then perhaps we could all become saints by taking the same leap you did. That is something He can ask of each one of us, to take that leap. Only, I don't want to take it."

Who knows, Bendrix? Faith is a gift, a present. God continues to knock on the door of every person's heart. He possesses the patience, love, and loyalty that we often lack. He created us to be free and never stops extending His hand to us, beckoning us to take that leap throughout our lives.

To take that leap of faith is to embark on a lifelong journey.
Faith comes alive when it results in practical outcomes - when it guides Christians in making specific choices and decisions that shape their actual lives.
Otherwise, faith is dead, because it remains like an abstract lesson or a set of moral traditions that hold no inherent value.

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Aug 23 Fri - Something Wicked Comes This Way.

 

Aug 23 Fri
Something Wicked Comes This Way.

Evil is an inversion of the good. The philosopher Jacques Maritain likened it to a parasite clinging to a healthy body; it draws its lifeblood from the repudiation of all things wholesome. It feeds itself by attacking the people and standards that hold them accountable to higher obligations and virtuous behavior.
Thus, evil speaks eloquently of tolerance and compassion when it’s weak, but switches effortlessly to intolerance and contempt when it gains the upper hand.
It cannot bear to be “tolerated.” It demands to be affirmed and its critics punished.
Evil can never live peacefully with truth and sacrificial love because its very existence burns it, an ongoing indictment of evil’s destructive perversity.

The American writer Matthew Crawford captured the undercurrent of so much of today’s self-described “progressive” thought in a recent posting: It’s anti-white, anti-male, anti-straight sexuality (unless abortion is involved), cynical toward religion, and anti-normal. Normalcy – the everyday lives of average people doing ordinary things informed by a broadly Biblical moral sense and a simple measure of contentment – is the target of a peculiarly venomous hatred.

Modesty is mocked, and the normal is cast as “weird.” Meanwhile, political luminaries hobnob with drag queens. As Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz might say, “We’re not in Kansas anymore.”

How best to understand our present moment?

Humans have a hunger for stories. It’s in our DNA. A good story can teach about the nature of the world and our lives in it more effectively than any classroom. Like young boys growing up, I had an appetite for works of fantasy and science fiction.

Bradbury, in “Something Wicked", presents a circus with Mr. Dark, who has an uncanny ability to read people’s deepest desires and grant them – for a price. Every selfish wish is satisfied, and every selfish wish is a trap. A woman desperate to be younger is returned to her childhood. . .but left friendless and miserable. Along with its blandishments, he turns everything he touches into division, conflict, and despair.

Look around at American life as we now know it. If we don’t see at least a few grasping and fractious parallels, we haven’t been awake.

Bradbury offered up a way to resist evil. It’s the deliberate choice to love when it’s easier to hate; to be grateful; to take joy from the gifts we already have in life despite its burdens and disappointments – these are what defeat Mr. Dark. These things give us peace, make us happy, and keep us fully human. Which is why they’re so infuriating to the chronically restless and dissatisfied.

Something wicked this way comes. It’s been coming for decades, pushed along by our appetites, choices, and the leaders we’ve selected. But we can change.

But if we claim to be Christians, let’s remember who we really are and what we really need before entering their circus tent.

Excerpts from Francis X. Maier

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Aug 22 Thu - Can I talk to God?

 

Aug 22 Thu
Can I talk to God?
This is the noble task of everyone, to pray and to love. To pray and to love, that is the happiness of man on earth.
 
Consider, children, a Christian’s treasure is not on earth, it is in heaven. Well then, our thoughts should turn to where our treasure is.
 
Prayer is nothing else than conversation and union with God. In it, God and the soul become like two pieces of wax molded into one; they cannot be separated any more.
 
After sin, we deserved to be left incapable of praying; but God in his goodness has allowed us to talk to him. Our prayer is incense delightful to God.
 
My children, your hearts are small, but your prayer enlarges them, and renders them capable of loving God. Prayer is a foretaste of heaven. It never leaves us without sweetness; it is like honey; it descends into the soul and sweetens everything. In a prayer well made, troubles vanish like snow under the rays of the sun.
 
Prayer makes time seem to pass quickly, and so pleasantly that one fails to notice how long it is. When I was parish priest of Bresse, once almost all my colleagues were ill, and as I made long journeys, I used to pray to God; I assure you, the time did not seem long to me. There are those who lose themselves in prayer, like a fish in water, because they are absorbed in God. There is no division in their hearts. How much I love those noble souls!
 
As for ourselves, how often do we come to church without thinking what we are going to do or what we are going to ask for. And yet, when we go to visit someone, we have no difficulty in remembering the motive why we came. Some appear as if they were about to say to God: ‘I am just going to say a couple of words, so I can get away quickly.’ I often think that when we come to adore our Lord, we should get all we ask, if we asked for it with a lively faith and a pure heart.
 On prayer, by St John Mary Vianney

Today is the Queenship of Mary

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Aug 21 Wed - Do we need fortitude to become saints?

 

Aug 21 Wed
Do we need fortitude to become saints?
We read in the Gospel that "Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison." John the Baptist had strongly condemned Herod for his immoral actions. In doing so, John was aligning himself with his role as the Precursor, which demanded that he hold himself to high standards. His uncompromising preaching, in fulfillment of God's Will, was always supported by his own rigorous lifestyle.

Fortitude is a cardinal virtue that we all require. As our Lord tells us, "The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force." As ordinary Christians, we have a particular need for fortitude. We have chosen holiness as our life's goal, and becoming a saint is not an easy endeavor: we must fulfill God's Will each day, every minute.

We need fortitude to take on difficult tasks, make sacrifices, and avoid becoming attached to anything that may hinder our souls. Fortitude empowers us to echo St. Paul's words: "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." As ordinary Christians, we must constantly practice this virtue to persistently respond to the divine calling, as St. Josemaría said, "being able to risk everything on one single card, the card of God's love."

A person with fortitude persists in doing what their conscience tells them is right. They do not measure the value of a task solely based on personal benefit, but rather on the service they provide to others. The strong individual may often suffer, but they remain steadfast; they may be brought to tears, but they brush them aside. When difficulties arise rapidly and overwhelmingly, they do not yield to them.

First and foremost, we must be determined to fulfill our duties in an exemplary manner. We can achieve this by continuously renewing our love for God, which will then be evident in how we approach our daily tasks. As Clement of Alexandria states: "A valiant soul cannot be separated from the love of God, nor does it ever need to search for peace of mind, as it firmly believes that everything happens for the best. It is never irritated or angered because it loves God and devotes itself entirely to Him."

The virtues of patience, for overcoming our flaws or bad temper, and serenity, to help us remain calm under pressure, will aid us in maintaining a continuous presence of God. "We cannot act like children or mad individuals. We must be strong, true sons and daughters of God, people who do not get overly excited at work or in professional situations. A continuous presence of God will enable us to appreciate the importance of every little detail."

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Aug 20 Tue - Why does God want us to love Him?

 Aug 20 Tue
Why does God want us to love Him?
All holiness and perfection of the soul lies in our love for Jesus Christ, our God, who is our Redeemer and our supreme good. God's love leads us to acquire and increase all the virtues that make a person perfect.

Doesn't God deserve all our love? He has loved us from all eternity. He tells us, "O man, consider carefully that I loved you first. You had not yet appeared in the light of day, nor did the world exist, but I already loved you. I have loved you from all eternity."

Since God knew that favors entice people, He wanted to bind us to His love through His gifts. And all the gifts He bestowed upon us were given for this purpose. He gave us a soul, made in His likeness, and endowed us with memory, intellect, and will. He gave us a body equipped with senses. He created heaven and earth and an abundance of things for us. He made all these things out of love for us, so that all of creation might serve us, and we, in turn, might love God out of gratitude for so many gifts.

But He didn't just give us beautiful things. To win our love, He went so far as to give us the fullness of Himself. And what did He do, when He saw that we were all dead through sin, and deprived of His grace? The eternal Father went so far as to send us His only Son, to suffer and die for us. Jesus made reparation for us and called us back to a sinless life.

He did not spare His Son, to spare us of the punishment; He bestowed upon us every good thing at once: grace, love, and heaven. All of these goods are certainly inferior to the Son. If He did so, how could He fail to give us all good things along with His Son?

Thus, God’s love should remain alive in us; it should grow, and inspire all our actions. If we lacked love, all the good things we might do in God's service would be useless and in vain.

We have to love God as we are, even though, at times, we may seem to feel nothing. Our love will be purer and more supernatural.
St. Josemaría: “Sometimes one hears love described (you'll have heard me mention this more than once) as if it were a movement towards self-satisfaction, or merely a means of selfishly fulfilling one's personality.
And I have always told you that it isn't so. True love demands getting out of oneself, giving oneself. Genuine love brings joy in its wake, a joy that has its roots in the shape of the Cross."
Let us lose our fear of giving ourselves too much. Let us give ourselves to God and souls without reserve, without limits.
The more we love God, with deeds, the more we accomplish ourselves as human beings and children of God.

Some excerpts from St Alphonsus Liguori and St. Josemaría.

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Aug 19 Mon - 5 tricks of the devil to attack man and 5 weapons to resist and defeat him.

 

Aug 19 Mon
5 tricks of the devil to attack man and 5 weapons to resist and defeat him.

The devil tirelessly works to make man stumble and fall. For this purpose, he uses his intelligence to know how and where to tempt.

Yet God has given believers weapons to defend themselves.
To defeat Satan at his own game, we need to know his tactics and also be aware of our own weaknesses. This way, we can protect ourselves from the prince of darkness.

Here are some of the weapons used by the devil:

1. Sadness.
If we pay attention to our conscience and listen when it warns us about falling into sadness, we can use that knowledge to resist the enemy's attacks with greater courage and prudence.

2. Kryptonite: our main weak point.
Soldiers use military tactics to discover the enemy's most vulnerable area. Everyone has his kryptonite. Every believer must know his weak points.

3. Social media.
There is the temptation to access harmful material on the internet, including social networks with content or lifestyles that violate modesty and decency.

4. The demon of impurity.
Our Lady of Fatima sadly said that most souls are lost because of sins against the virtue of purity and chastity.

5. Despair.
The worst sin against God is the lack of trust in His infinite mercy. Many in our modern society have given up all hope and trust in the love and mercy of Jesus, and the maternal power of Mary's intercession.

Against these five forms of attack by the devil, there are also five other forms of defense to fight, resist, and defeat him:

1. Prayer.
No matter how strong, persistent, deceptive, and cunning the devil's temptations are, prayer can conquer all!

2. The practice of penance.
Jesus, tempted by the devil in the desert, devoted his efforts to prayer, penance, and fasting. The devil's attempts were thwarted.
When the apostles asked the Lord why they could not cast out demons, Jesus replied: "They can only be cast out by prayer and fasting." (Mt. 17, 21)

3. Sincerity and spiritual direction.
It is essential to open our troubled souls to a trained spiritual director when we find ourselves in confusion or a spiritual storm.

4. "Nunc Coepi": Begin again!
Only God is perfect, and we are all sinners. The devil attacks us after we fall into sin, leading us to despair and lose hope.
The true soldier of Jesus, after a fall, will not despair or give in to more sin but will humbly admit their fall, go to sacramental confession, and start anew.

5. Go to Mary.
In our constant battle against the devil, we must seek Mary's protection.
We must be close to Mary, wear the Scapular, pray the Rosary, and, especially in times of temptation, invoke Mary's Holy Name. If we do this, victory will be ours thanks to the powerful intercession of Our Lady.
Some excerpts from Ed Broom.

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Aug 18 Sun - Why is the Eucharist our daily bread?

 

Aug 18 Sun
Why is the Eucharist our daily bread?
In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus teaches us to ask, “Give us this day OUR DAILY BREAD.” You could fruitfully meditate on them during your times of mental prayer this week.
This petition comes from a creature looking up to his Creator, of children looking up to their father and mother, of children of God looking up to God their Father. The look is one of need, and of trust, and of gratitude.

This petition is our own call to help create a world in which these MATERIAL GOODS are supplied. It calls up the promise that God will give us everything. It reminds us of the daily work we do to get our daily bread.

This petition refers also to SPIRITUAL HUNGER: The Bread of Life is the Word of God accepted in faith, and the Body of Christ received in the Eucharist. Man needs God.

“This day” pertains also to the EUCHARIST, celebrated each day, our daily bread.
It means most deeply, “Give us You, Lord," which he does in the Eucharist.

Our daily bread, the Eucharist, finally, becomes a PLEDGE OF THE GLORY TO COME, an anticipation of the happiness of heavenly life.

But for now, in every Mass, the work of our redemption is carried on, and we break the one bread that provides the medicine of immortality, the antidote for death, and the food that makes us live forever in Jesus Christ.

There is such a deep meaning in just one petition of the Lord’s Prayer. It takes time to “read” its meaning. We do so in silence in the presence of God, talking to him about it. The riches are there, but we may never see them unless we take the time to look.

Mental prayer invites God into this conversation, focusing it on something specific, like the Gospel reading for today’s Mass, or how my spouse is doing, or what my kids might need, or a hundred other matters that matter to you and to God.
But so, mental prayer should normally be done
   - at a set time,
   - for a set amount of time,
   - in a set place, in a place conducive to prayer. Our Lord said we should go into our room and close the door. That room could literally be our bedroom, or some other place in our house, or while walking early in the morning, or in a chapel in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
Conditions don’t always have to be perfect for us to have this conversation. If necessary, we can do it in the car.

        This conversation can be helped with the Scriptures in front of us, or a good book for meditation or a journal where we write personal notes, advise received in spiritual direction, and resolutions.

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Aug 17 Sat - What is a Synod?

 

Aug 17 Sat
What is a Synod?
The Church by her very nature is synodal, she is communion, she is assembly. And in the Church, we have all received the anointing of the Holy Spirit, which makes us prophets. We are all called to prophesy and express what the Spirit is saying today to his Church, for ourselves and others.

Now, it is the Holy Spirit who speaks in us. And this is where the misunderstanding can arise, as some mistake the Holy Spirit for their own opinions. Discernment is necessary. We need to examine the spirits to see whether they come from God or from the Evil one. The Devil is skilled at disguising himself as an angel of light and making us accept as evangelical and of God what actually comes from selfishness, what destroys and kills.

We must therefore listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to his Church today. And we must discover this by exercising discernment.

1. Our first criterion for discernment is THE WORD OF GOD. In it, God continues to speak to His people today, and to our hearts. Thus, it is necessary to cultivate an attitude of listening to the Spirit through prayer, silence, and contemplation. When we pray, we are not wasting time but aligning ourselves with God, who wants to guide our lives and history. If synods and assemblies lead us to pray more, to commune with God, to open our hearts to His Word and His will, and to convert our lives to Him, then they are blessed. However, if they result in mere words and meetings without true conversion, then they are not from God.

2. A second criterion for discernment is to consider what the Church has lived and taught throughout the centuries. We refer to this as TRADITION, with a capital letter. We cannot invent the Church and the mission that Christ has entrusted to her. The Church is a gift from the Heart of Christ. She is the beloved Bride for whom Christ gave His life, purifying her through the waters of baptism and the Word, presenting her to Himself without blemish or wrinkle.

3. Within this living Tradition, the saints are like pure water that has revitalized the Church. To learn about the lives of the saints, their stories woven with the love of God and the countless human sins, is to approach the witnesses of that love. Sometimes, these witnesses have even sealed their testimonies with their own blood, always giving their lives to the extreme for love. It is this encounter with the saints that brings vitality to the Church in her assemblies and synods. If we do not emphasize, in each assembly, the CALL TO HOLINESS and the worthiness of dedicating our lives to this pursuit, then the synods and assemblies will be sterile, like a sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

4. The MAGISTERIUM OF THE CHURCH consists of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him, as well as all the faithful who continue the development of doctrine that has been accumulated over the centuries for the salvation of the world and the people of our time. This Magisterium is an integral part of our living Tradition. Straying from this path leads to wandering and renders one barren. The Holy Spirit cannot contradict Himself and tell us something contrary to what He has said before. The Holy Spirit does not make mistakes or deceive us. What the Spirit has spoken to His Church at one time, He does not contradict at another time. Therefore, Scripture, Tradition, and Magisterium are interconnected, as Vatican II teaches us (Dei Verbum, 10).

For instance, Pope John Paul II qualified as definitive the doctrine that the Church can only ordain men to the priesthood. And he did so by virtue of the infallibility with which the Spirit assists the Church and her Magisterium “in docendo.” It makes no sense to contradict what the Spirit has said to his Church at a given moment or to make proposals that do not flow from this listening to the Spirit. The same applies to priestly celibacy, the use of direct contraceptives, the blessing of same-sex unions, abortion in all circumstances, respect for life until natural death, and so on.

Synods and assemblies are not tools for contradicting what the Spirit reveals to His Church, as if the Church were a civil parliament that changes laws based on popular demand. The Holy See has cautioned the Synod of the Church in Germany that it 'does not possess the authority to compel bishops and the faithful to adopt new forms of governance and new approaches to doctrine and morality.' This principle applies to the entire Church. As a result, certain irregular proposals have been rejected because they do not originate from the Spirit and have not been integrated into the final documents. Some of these proposals, put forth by a small minority, have been included in the concluding documents without proper discernment.

May God assist us during these turbulent times in both society and the Church. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever; do not be carried away by various strange teachings" (Heb 13:8-9).
Excerpts from Bishop Demetrio Fernández.

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Aug 16 Fri - What is grace?

 

Aug 16 Fri
What is grace?
Our salvation is a grace from God. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we share in Christ's Passion and Resurrection, and are born to a new life: the life of grace. We become members of Christ's body, the Church, and living branches united to the vine, which is Christ.

The first effect of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conversion, which makes us acceptable to God. As Jesus announced, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Moved by grace, a person turns to God, departs from sin, and places himself under God's justice and mercy.

Grace is a favor, the free help that God gives us so that we can respond to his calling. It makes us children of God, adopted children, sharers of the divine nature, and eternal life. Grace is a participation in God's life. It introduces us to the intimacy of the Blessed Trinity.

The grace of God's children is a consequence of the Redemption that our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished.

Grace is a mysterious reality that lies beyond what human intelligence or the senses alone can apprehend. It involves the Divinity itself, the intimate life of the Trinity, and the action of the Trinity on humanity. Whatever we know about grace comes from divine revelation. Divine revelation itself is a form of grace.

As St. Thomas himself points out, grace means an unmerited gift, a gift given through love, and a calling for gratitude to the Father of all graces on our part.

The Christian meaning of the word grace is much richer; everything that creatures receive from God is unmerited. Who can rightfully demand from God the gift of life or the gift of intelligence? Therefore, we can properly call natural gifts all the benefits that God has bestowed on us, as well as our human nature. These include all that God gives us to preserve our nature and bring it to perfection in the natural order. In this sense, life, health, and all that perfect a person in the order of nature (i.e., beauty, personal charm, talent) are natural gifts.

In addition to those mentioned above, other gifts from God are beyond human nature, and make man better, within the created order. One example is the gift of immortality, which Adam and Eve enjoyed before committing original sin. These gifts are called preternatural gifts.

Strictly speaking, however, the term grace refers to all those divine gifts given to humans (and angels) that elevate them to the supernatural or divine order. They transcend the demands of human nature and cannot be acquired or merited by natural efforts alone. We call these gifts supernatural graces. Grace, therefore, is any supernatural gift that God gratuitously bestows on us for our eternal salvation.

Every supernatural grace is a divine gift to people in which God himself is the gift. It is bestowed on us so that we may have a share in the intimate life of the Godhead.

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Aug 15 Thu - What is the Assumption of Our Lady?

 

Aug 15 Thu
What is the Assumption of Our Lady?
The Immaculate Virgin was preserved free from all stain of original sin; when the course of her earthly life was finished, she was taken up, body and soul, into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, the Mirror of Justice, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son.

Our Mother has fully obtained the goal we all hope to achieve, the fullness of happiness, love, and peace. She has gone before us, led by God, so that all her children on earth may foster a fervent hope.

Our Lady's Assumption enlivens our hope. Far from paralyzing our human energy, the promise of eternal life urges us on in our efforts to be faithful to our Christian commitments in the midst of the world. The hope of heaven is an imperative call to live and act responsibly. God wants us to work with a serene urgency, striving by our work to give all creation its deepest meaning and bringing all men and women what their hearts are longing for.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son’s Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians.
Christ rose from the dead with his glorified body never to die again.

Mary’s Assumption is an announcement and anticipates the final judgment when God will reunite our bodies with our immortal souls. The Queenship of Mary is implicit in her Assumption. As the Psalmist said, “The queen stands at your right hand, arrayed in gold.” Mary’s beauty is her holiness, fittingly arrayed in the golden glory of her body.

How can I correspond to this action of God? Have devotion to the Blessed Virgin.
The liturgical feasts dedicated to the Mother of God, and Marian prayers, such as the Rosary, a summary of the whole Gospel, express this devotion to the Virgin Mary.
Why not pray the Rosary daily? It can be recited in the family, while walking alone, while driving, before or after daily Mass.

In honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary, we get back from her much more than we give. The reason is that she mediates for us with her Son. The King of Heaven listens to the petitions of his Mother.
God wants to associate us in his work to save and sanctify human beings.

“Let us bear all the difficulties of our voyage over the seas of this life in the hope of heaven. Our goal, and that of everyone who wants to love, is to reach God and the glory of heaven. Otherwise, nothing is worthwhile. To get to heaven, we must be faithful. And to be faithful we have to struggle, advancing on our way even though we may sometimes fall flat on our face. With his help, we will get up again. It is worthwhile to be detached from earthly goods! It is worthwhile to say 'no' to so many things of this world, with faith, hope, and love." (St. Josemaría)
Contrapposto: Our Mother, Mirror of Justice.

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Aug 14 Wed - How many times should I forgive?

 

Aug 14 Wed
How many times should I forgive?
One day, I was taken aback by the words, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  And still, their significance had never quite hit me.  “Forgive me, God, the way I have forgiven others?”  Given how bad I am at forgiving others, that seems more like a prayer for condemnation rather than forgiveness.  Probably, the prayer should be: “Forgive me, Lord, a whole lot better than I forgive others.”

“How well do I forgive people?”  Because, if I’m not forgiving others, what do I expect God to do?  Or to put this another way: Given how much God has forgiven me – like a $10 billion debt that I could never repay – how in the world could I justify not forgiving someone a puny $10 debt?

Stated that way, that problem is pretty obvious. But I’m often struck, both in myself and in others, by how easy it is to forget how much we’ve been forgiven.

“But they have to repent!” you say of others.  To God, yes; not to me.  If God were waiting for an adequate repentance from us to forgive us, He wouldn’t have sacrificed Himself on the Cross before we repent.  He forgives us and then we repent so that we can enjoy the fruits of that forgiveness.  We don’t earn God’s forgiveness.  If God doesn’t wait for our repentance to forgive, why would I?

Christ said, “The measure with which you measure is the measure with which you shall be measured.”  That’s terrifying. But I suppose you could take it as a challenge.

The point is, you would be saying to God: “Yes, I take responsibility for the way I forgive others.  I know you have forgiven me a lot – a whole lot (in fact, let’s not get into the details right now) – so now I intend to ‘pay it forward.’  So, God, you hold me to that standard because I want to be like You and love with the kind of love You showed in and through Christ.”

The God who reveals Himself in the Scriptures is a God of justice.  So yes, we must seek justice.  We cannot simply let murderers and rapists and rapacious dictators and graft-taking politicians roam free to plunder the innocent.  But it is one thing to discipline our anger at injustice to bring about justice, reconciliation, and peace; it’s another thing altogether to let our anger run wild so we feel “justified” excoriating and abusing those we consider “vile,” “sinful,” and “reprobate” (totally unlike us, of course).

You have to wonder sometimes when you hear the anger, hatred, and sarcasm spewed out daily whether these people somehow live under the illusion that they’ve never sinned, that they’ve never been forgiven, and that the measure with which they measure – that little, tiny bit of thimble-sized tolerance they show – won’t be the measure with which they will be measured.
Excerpts from Randall Smith.

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Aug 13 Tue - Should parents share responsibility in the upbringing of their children?

 

Aug 13 Tue
Should parents share responsibility in the upbringing of their children?
Here are seven helpful tips:

As Christian men, fathers have a moral duty to care for and love everyone in the family. Helping your children understand what "Father's love" is, will help them learn what God the Father's love is like.

1. Quality and quantity are both important.

Some people use the phrase "Quality is better than quantity" as an excuse. This is only partially true. When it comes to parenting and being present in your children's lives, both quality and quantity matter. Being present means spending time with your children.

2. Define the roles.

Just because both spouses have equal responsibilities doesn't mean they have to do the same things. Men and women are different, and these differences are necessary for the children. It's important to discover what your role is instead of just thinking about what is comfortable or comes naturally to you. Following traditional gender roles, where the mother pampers and cares and the father imposes discipline, may not be a good idea.

3. Put yourself in mom's shoes.

At times, adopt a more sensitive and emotional attitude, rather than always being rational or moral. Allow yourself to spoil your children a little. Women have innate qualities to talk, give advice on sentimental problems, help with homework, and more. Men also have a lot to offer, even if it may not come as naturally to them. Masculinity itself teaches respect, chivalry, care for the weakest, and authority.

4. Share the chores.

It's healthy to agree upon and alternate chores and housework. Having open conversations about this will not only avoid uncomfortable domestic quarrels, but it will also show your love for the house and leave a lasting impression on your children.

5. Be the head of the domestic church.

The Church encourages you to make your home and family a domestic church, where faith is celebrated, where you talk about God, and where you pray together. Men also have the responsibility to create this experience of a domestic church.

6. Speak loudly when necessary, but also be gentle and delicate when appropriate.

As the father, you may have a more authoritative role at home. However, discipline should always be an act of love and not a way to impose a regime of terror. Listen attentively to your children's requests and be flexible with them, just as God the Father is with us.

7. Be a role model in life.

The way you show affection to your spouse, the joy with which you do household chores, how you talk about others, how you live your faith and relationship with God, and of course, your relationship with your children—all of this serves as a model for them. Everything you do sets an example. That's why it's important to try to live according to what you say, living as a Christian not for the sake of appearances, but out of love for God and your children.

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Aug 12 Mon - Four traps that the devil whispers to stop you from praying, and how to respond.

 

Aug 12 Mon
Four traps that the devil whispers to stop you from praying, and how to respond.

The devil does everything he can to separate us from prayer. Let us remember some of the tricks he uses.

Trap number 1: Prayer is useless.

Indeed, prayer may seem useless, a waste of time.

However, we are mistaken when we give up praying because we have too much work to do. By doing so, we prioritize productivity over love. Often what seems most useless in our lives is also the most precious: cuddling a child, embracing our spouse, or contemplating a beautiful landscape. Similarly, prayer is both radically useless and fundamentally indispensable.

Trap number 2: You don't know how to pray.

The Tempter presents numerous arguments to convince us that prayer is too difficult for us, that it is a task for specialists, and that we should train ourselves before we can start praying. Once again, it is true that we may not know how to pray.

Our prayer may be filled with distractions, infidelities, subtle self-seeking, and countless other imperfections. So what? When a father cradles his baby in his arms and the baby babbles and smiles, does the father let go of the child and say, "You can only come to me when you know how to speak"? Of course not! On the contrary, the father marvels at and cherishes those awkward babblings. What holds for earthly parents also holds for God!

Trap number 3: You'll pray when you have time.

One thing is certain: if we wait until we have time to pray, we will never pray because there will always be urgent tasks to accomplish. If we intend to pray today but do not set aside a specific time for it, we run the risk of reaching the evening without praying.

The person who prays regularly is not the one with ample free time but who assigns time for prayer. It is a matter of choice: what are our priorities? Do we view prayer as an optional luxury? If it is a priority, it will have a significant place in our time management.

Trap number 4: Instead of praying, work.

In other words, if we worked wholeheartedly, there is no need to pray.

It is true that prayer and work together help us be in the presence of God, to be close to Him, and to serve Him. Thankfully! Otherwise, it would mean that we could only spend a small portion of our days with God.

Do I try to get close to God? Am I "connected" to Him? I must do His will, wherever He wants, whenever and however He wants. Whether it is when I'm preparing a meal, leading a meeting at work, or managing the accounts for my company, that is when I am closest to Him. One cannot pray "at all times" if one does not dedicate specific times for prayer.

So let us entrust our good intentions to Mary, whose prayer was perfect, to unite our work with our prayer and with our relaxation.
Excerpts from Christine Ponsard

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Aug 11 Sun - Why is the Lord the living bread that came down from heaven?

 

Aug 11 Sun
Why is the Lord the living bread that came down from heaven?

Two things are troubling the Jews: the notion that Jesus is bread, and the idea that he came down from heaven.

Regarding Jesus as bread:
We believe it, but those men might have understood Jesus' words metaphorically. They could have interpreted it as him merely bringing them some true gifts from heaven and eternal life. His miracles served as evidence, as he provided mental or physical healing, food for the hungry, wine for joy, and, most importantly, life again after death for a few.

As for him coming down from heaven:
We comprehend this, but the Jews might have seen "from heaven" as him being sent by God, similar to John the Baptist or one of the prophets. They may have believed that he was formed in his mother's womb to be a messenger of God. Once again, Jesus' teachings and miracles served as evidence for them to take this claim seriously. However, their argument was based only on their knowledge of Jesus' human ancestry and relatives. They knew St. Joseph and they knew Our Lady.

In response, Jesus answers, "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him," and "Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me." These words could have been interpreted by them to mean that if they had an issue with Jesus, it was because there was something wrong in their relationship with God the Father.

Jesus in the Eucharist is the Bread of Life that came down from heaven, which we consume to obtain eternal life.

The celebration of the Eucharist in the Mass has been the center of the Church's life since Christ's command to "do this in memory of me."

During the Mass, the priest reenacts Jesus' actions and words from the Last Supper, serving as "the memorial of Christ, his life, death, Resurrection, and intercession in the presence of the Father."

By "memorial," we don't simply mean remembering. The memorial of the Mass is not like a funeral service or a national holiday commemorating an important event.

Instead, the Mass as a memorial means a real participation in the original event. To illustrate, consider how the Last Supper and the Passion of Christ are one event: during the Last Supper, Our Lord offered himself to the Father in a real, sacramental manner, and during his Passion in a real, physical manner. In the Mass, we are participating in that original unique event in a real, sacramental manner.

The Church requires the faithful to participate in the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feast days and, prepared by the sacrament of Reconciliation, to receive the Eucharist at least once a year, preferably during the Easter season. However, the Church strongly encourages the faithful to receive the Holy Eucharist on Sundays and feast days, or even more frequently, such as daily.

Once one fulfills the minimum requirements, why not strive to do more?

Excerpts from Kevin Aldrich

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Aug 10 Sat - Is humility the source of peace for the soul?

 Aug 10 Sat
Is humility the source of peace for the soul?
As Christians, we must be sowers of peace and joy. Peace is a consequence of humility. It is the inner harmony that comes from the awareness of our shortcomings as well as of God's gifts. Humble people are realistic in the interior struggle: they know they make mistakes, and admit them; they attribute to God alone the divine effectiveness of their labors.

“If you center your attention on yourself, you are not only taking the wrong road, but besides, you will lose Christian happiness in this life. You will lose that joy and cheerfulness which are nonetheless incomplete, because happiness will only be complete in heaven."

Pride takes away peace because it makes us live in a false world, far from God. If the soul imagines that it can achieve something unaided, then the failure that it is bound to experience causes it to be uneasy, restless, and anxious. Humility, on the other hand, leads us to God, and to his Son, Jesus Christ. And there we find peace.

The effort to acquire humility does not entail a brutal, tense, or anxiety-filled struggle; it means asking God to make us humble, and recognizing that in the concrete reality of our day, we can do nothing by ourselves, but with God's help we can do all things.

We must have peace in the interior struggle and in the face of difficulties. Yet “Getting closer to God, without a deep basis of humility, could lead to presumption, to the corruption of true hope, to pride, and, sooner or later, to spiritual ruin, on being faced with the unexpected experience of one's frailty."

“I usually give the example of the dust which is stirred up by the wind until, high in the sky, it forms a golden cloud, as it reflects the light of the sun. In the same way, divine grace raises souls very high, and we reflect all the marvel of goodness, wisdom, power, and beauty that is God. If we realize we are but dust and wretchedness - completely worthless - God will do the rest. This is something which greatly consoles me."

Neither should we get upset by exterior trials because, as St Augustine teaches, grace is given to those who hope in God. Cry out under the hand of the enemy. Ask God for his help. If there is one who fights against you, there is also one who fights for you, who looks down upon the battle and will come to your aid in the combat.

“We all make mistakes, even in areas where we have been fighting for years and years. If our ascetical struggle disheartens us, then we are proud. We must be humble, and we must want to be faithful. We are indeed unworthy servants, but with those unworthy servants God can do great things in this world if we, on our part, do one thing: if we make the effort to stretch out our hand and take the hand which God, with his grace, offers us from heaven."

Today, the Martyrdom of St. Lawrence on the grille.

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Aug 9 Fri - Should I persevere in the struggle to please God?

 

Aug 9 Fri
Should I persevere in the struggle to please God?
St Arsenius lived between the 4th and 5th centuries. He was a dignitary of very high rank in the Roman Empire. On one occasion, while he was praying to God to help him live a holy life, he heard a mystical voice telling him: "Get rid of your sinful attachments and you will be saved".

He did so and entered a monastery. But after he had become a monk, the voice told him: "Arsenius, be silent and pray in the silence of the chapel." So he did.
The monk grew in holiness, and the faithful travelled from far and wide just to listen to his teachings or some helpful advice. All this wisdom came to him from God.

St Arsenius once again heard the mystical voice commanding him: "Persevere in the struggle. Come, I want you to see what many people are doing". The obedient monk came and saw three scenes.

In the first scene, he saw a man chopping wood, tying it up in a heavy bundle, and trying to carry it on his back without success. Strangely enough, this prompted him to cut more wood and add it to the first bundle, only to try to carry it again without success. This action was repeated again and again.

He then spotted another individual drawing water from a well and pouring it into a nearby water tank. The tank had a hole in the bottom that connected to the well, so all the water immediately returned to the well, the source.

Later he saw two men on horseback trying to get a huge beam through the door of a church, sideways, in such a way that it would never fit. Nevertheless, the men insisted and insisted.

Later, the voice explained to St. Arsenius: "The man chopping wood is the example of those sinners who, instead of lessening the burden of their sins through prayer and penance, increase it, falling back into them and adding sin to sin.”

Then, he described to him that the subject who wanted to fill water in the tank with a hole symbolized “lukewarm people who do good deeds and bad deeds, without realizing that the merit they obtain every time they do something good is distorted and annulled and replaced by the loss of merit they incur when they do something bad.”

“Finally, these knights of the beam represent those who presume to be just and upright despite being inwardly full of pride, of being unforgiving, and of never yielding to anything or anyone.

“Those who behave in this way, as long as they do not change their attitude, will be condemned to remain outside the kingdom of God.”

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Aug 8 Thu - Why should I genuflect in church?

 

Aug 8 Thu
Why should I genuflect in church?
If we were granted an audience with some high-ranking person, how carefully we would mind our behavior and manners! We have an audience with Jesus every day, an intimate personal conversation leading up to the total union of sacramental Communion. How do we receive him? How do we care for the basic details of piety?

“Piety has its own good manners -Learn them. What a pity to see those "pious" people who don't know how to behave in Mass or how to make the sign of the Cross (they make weird gestures, all in a hurry), or how to bend the knee before the Tabernacle (their ridiculous genuflections seem a mockery), or how to bow their heads reverently before a picture of our Lady."

Genuflection is a gesture of adoration reserved for the Most Blessed Sacrament and the Holy Cross. It signifies the adoration owed to Christ truly present in the Eucharistic.

We must know the reason why genuflection was established, its meaning, and form of doing it. Thus, take into account:

1. Genuflection

The word genuflection comes from the medieval Latin genuflexĭo: gĕnu (knee) and flexĭo (flexion). It is done by bending the right knee to the ground.  
It was a sign of respect, in the West, given to kings and nobles during the Middle Ages. However, they were respected by bending the left knee. This is why Christians bend the right knee as a sign of devotion to God alone.

2. Single or double genuflection?

In the past, Catholics genuflected with two knees before the exposed Blessed Sacrament. Thus, they bent the right knee until it touched the ground and then the left knee. The person then stood up, raising the left knee first.

Presently, we are told that only simple genuflection is needed before the Blessed Sacrament, whether reserved in the tabernacle or exposed for public adoration, except when in a procession.

Thus, double genuflection is not obligatory in an exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, but many continue to practice it out of personal devotion.

3. At what other times do we genuflect?

Genuflection is made when entering and leaving the church, always facing the tabernacle, to greet and bid farewell to Christ the Eucharist.
The way to know that ‘the presence of Christ’ in the tabernacle is when the vigil lamp is lit at the side.

Genuflection before the Cross is only performed ‘from the solemn adoration in the liturgical action of Good Friday at the Passion of the Lord until the beginning of the Easter Vigil’.

4. Does genuflection pleases the Lord?

St. Ambrose, one of the greatest Doctors of the Church, said: ‘When the knee is bent, the offence to the Lord is eased, His anger is appeased, His grace is brought forth’.

Therefore, the gesture of genuflection is a beautiful way to express our faith in the Eucharistic presence of Christ and our love for Him.

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