Sep 1 Mon - What happens if you separate God and man?

 

Sep 1 Mon
What happens if you separate God and man?
If the human person wants to know what he is supposed to be, he needs to look to Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary, who reveal what humanity without sin should look like.

Thus, Pope John Paul focused on Christian humanism because he recognized that the problem of man was the problem of our times.

Yet the two questions—how a man lives as God wills, and how he lives an authentically human life—go inseparably together.  God and man are not in an “either/or” relationship.

The real question is not “science vs. religion” but “Who is man?"

For the fundamentalists, the idea of man as “co-creator” is missing.  For the evolutionists, man seems to be just another species, an advanced monkey with nothing exceptional about him.

Neither side recognizes man as co-creator, given dominion by God by virtue of his being made in the divine image and likeness, charged with advancing the world to the glory of God through his procreation and his work.

The Protestant fundamentalists seem to be boxed into a ready-made and finished universe. The idea that man could advance Creation challenges the classical Protestant view of God’s grace helping human works.

The artificial dilemma—God or man—adversely affects the understanding of both.  With God absent from His Creation, one loses awareness of the dynamism of Creation: that God not only makes but constantly sustains Creation and remains active in it.  Creation instead becomes a static event that happened, not one that continues to happen. 

That leads, of course, to the error that Creation is unrelated to salvation, as if Creation has no role to play in salvation history.

With creation “back then” and the cancellation of Providence as a result, we are on a straight path to deism—a “god” who offers nice ethical teachings designed to make us feel good but who can be kept to the side, like a fire extinguisher in a box, “break glass when needed.”

The same might be said of nominalism. Are human actions “good” or “evil” just because God said so?  Or is morality prior even to God’s declaration (Catholic point)?

Initially, as long as an omniscient God declares what is “good” and “evil,” things don’t fall apart.  But when the belief in God fades away, who is going to label things “good” and “evil?”

With God’s absence, the mission seems to fall to man, who believes that “nothing is forbidden.” This produces the modern individualistic ethic that incoherently talks about “my good” and “your good” but never “the good.”

Similarly, “freedom” becomes not a tool for me to make the good, but rather, I make things good by choosing them. Here we recognize the roots of relativism.

That happened because Protestantism devalued the human person by sidelining human acts (“human works”) or even considering human beings as utterly corrupt.

Lose either side of the equation—God or man—and one’s understanding of the other immediately begins to deform.

Some excerpts from John M. Grondelski

Aug 31 Sun = How can I become a reliable instrument of God?

 Aug 31 Sun
How can I become a reliable instrument of God?
Jesus had been invited to dine in the house of a leading Pharisee. The Pharisees were convinced that nobody else could know the Law or observe it as perfectly as they did. With a simple parable, Jesus warned them of the consequences of their pride.

Jesus reminds us in this way of the need to shun vanity and not aspire to places of honor. Whatever our tasks and talents may be, without humility, we cannot be effective. An extraordinarily gifted person who is proud will ruin his effectiveness and diminish that of others.

Humble people, on the other hand, though they may not be brilliant humanly speaking, know their role and are effective wherever they are placed. They know their limitations and capabilities. They know how to do and disappear. Their good qualities are always a help, never a hindrance. But above all, in God's eyes, “there are no great or small jobs: they are all great if they are done for Love. Things that are seemingly small become great through the prism of our vocation of service."

To become humble, we have to engrave on our hearts what St. Josemaría wrote: Your aim should be this: among your brothers, to be the last. We all tend to overestimate ourselves. If you knew yourself, you would rejoice in being despised, and your heart would weep at honor and praise. A Father of the Church said: The first degree of humility is to consider your brethren better than you and ahead of you in everything. With that attitude, our talents will never go to waste. And in the end, our Lord himself will say to us: Friend, go up higher.

Truly humble people are happy to be little esteemed, since they see their lowly opinion of themselves confirmed by others. They do not need much attention, they do not like to show off, they do not lay claim to "rights". They fulfill their duty and play the part that corresponds to them, without attracting attention to themselves. We must be a reliable instrument, not requiring special care to function: an instrument that is always useful, come rain or shine, when things are easy or when things are hard. And we will be reliable if we don't think about ourselves.

Our efforts are divinely effective when we work and pass unnoticed like a little donkey that pulls its cart faithfully and perseveringly, ever docile to its master's instructions: guided by God, subject to our Lord's gentle yoke, which makes our burden light and the way sure. Then the most ordinary things are filled with unsuspected color and meaning and value: “O blessed perseverance of the donkey that turns the water-wheel! -Always the same pace. Always the same circles. -One day after another: all of them the same.
“Without that, there would be no ripening in the fruit, no blossoming in the orchard, nor the scent of flowers in the garden."

And, to be humble, we have to look out for opportunities to serve others.

Aug 30 Sat - Why am I sad?

 

Aug 30 Sat
Why am I sad?
If we are united to God, the joy of our life, nothing should make us sad. St John Chrysostom asks: What could perturb a saint? Death? No! For he desires it as a prize. Insults? No! For Christ taught us to bear them: Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you. Illnesses? Not those either. For Scripture reminds us: Accept whatever comes to you, and when humbled, be patient. 

What then could upset a saint? Nothing. In this world, even joy usually ends in sadness. But for those who live their lives according to Christ, even troubles are turned into joy.
Whatever happens, omnia in bonum! Everything works for the good. God wants it to happen, or at least allows it to happen.

We must be cheerful always, fighting sadness energetically, for sorrow has destroyed many, and there is no profit in it. Sadness causes grave harm to the soul because it is the fruit of pride, just as joy is the consequence of the love of God.

Sadness eats away at the foundations of the interior life, implying a lack of awareness of our divine filiation, a lack of trust in God, and an abandonment into His hands. Sadness opposes and rejects the Holy Spirit. A happy person works well, enjoys good things, and pleases God. However, a sad person often acts poorly.

Sadness is a great ally of the enemy. A person who is sad is in a near occasion of sin. If this grave danger should ever attack our souls, we must examine ourselves, ask for light, and look for the cause. Happiness is a consequence of self-surrender to God. 

At the bottom of sadness, we often find the dregs of selfishness and personal concerns. “You are not happy because you make everything revolve around yourself as if you were always the center: that you have a stomachache, or you are tired, or they have said this or that..."
Have you ever tried thinking about Him, and through Him, about others?

If we are tempted to be sad, the first remedy is St. Josemaría's advice: Pray. “You ask me to suggest a cure for your sadness. I will give you a prescription from an expert adviser, the Apostle St James: Is any of you sad? Are you sad, my son? Pray! Try it and you will see."

Talking and listening to God will bring life back to our souls. Then, with the supernatural outlook of faith, hope, love, and desires for atonement, we will see that we only have reasons for being happy. We will resolve to remove the obstacles that separate us from the Lord, the God of our joy. Once more, we will happily serve our brothers and sisters and all people. “Our service must be carried out joyfully, St. Josemaría says. Wherever there is a child of God, there must be the cheerfulness that comes from interior peace. When we have this spirit, we will do everything that we do joyfully."

Aug 29 Fri - Will I be a traitor?

 

Aug 29 Fri
Will I be a traitor?

In a recent catechesis, the Pope recalled when Jesus revealed that one of the Twelve would betray him: "Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me, one who is eating with me" (Mk 14:18).

Strong words. Jesus does not condemn, but shows that real love must be joined with truth.

Jesus neither raises his voice nor points a finger, nor names Judas. The disciples become distressed and ask him, one by one, Surely it is not I?

Will I be the one? – This is what we must ask ourselves. Not to assure ourselves of being innocent, but to discover that we are fragile. It is not the cry of a guilty one, but the whisper of one wanting to love, but aware of the possibility of failing and causing harm. In this awareness, our journey of salvation begins.

Jesus does not denounce to disgrace them. He tells the truth because He wants to save. And to be saved, one must feel involved, feel that one is beloved despite everything, feel that evil is real but that it does not have the last word. Only One who has known the truth of a deep love can also accept the wound of betrayal.

The disciples’ reaction is not anger, but sadness. They are not indignant, but sorrowful. It is a pain that arises from the real possibility of becoming traitors. And precisely this sorrow, if welcomed with sincerity, becomes a place for conversion. The Gospel teaches us to recognize it as a painful opportunity to be born again.

Jesus then adds, “But woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed...” These harsh words were not a curse, but a cry of pain, and sincere and deep compassion.

We are used to judging; God instead accepts suffering. Facing evil, He does not avenge it, but grieves. If we refuse God’s love, if, by betraying it, we become unfaithful to ourselves, then we lose the meaning of our existence and exclude ourselves from salvation.

And yet, precisely then, at the darkest moment, the light is not extinguished. When we allow the pain of Christ to touch us, then we are finally born again. Faith does not prevent us from falling into sin, but always offers us a way out of it: that of compassion and mercy.

Our fragility does not scandalize Jesus. He continues to trust, even those who will betray him. This is the silent power of God: He never abandons the table of love, even if He is left alone.

We must ask ourselves, with sincerity: “Will I be the one?”

This is hope: knowing that even if I fail, God will never fail me. Even if I betray him, He never stops loving me. And if I allow myself to be touched by this love. I can begin to live no longer as a traitor, but as a child who is always loved.

Aug 28 Thu - What is more important in the Mass, the Readings or the Eucharistic liturgy?

 

Aug 28 Thu
What is more important in the Mass, the Readings or the Eucharistic liturgy?

The importance we give to the word of God should not obscure the value of the Eucharistic liturgy. Neither should we fall into the opposite error, because the Church has always venerated the Sacred Scriptures just as she venerates the body of the Lord. 
Thus, everything is continually directed to the sacrifice that Christ accomplished by dying on the cross, and to the new life He gives us with his resurrection.

For the celebration of the Eucharist, the first Christians gathered together and began to listen to the Sacred Scriptures with veneration. For “the force and power in the word of God is so great that it stands as the support and energy of the Church, the strength of faith for her sons, the food of the soul, the pure and everlasting source of spiritual life.” Through this word, “the voice of the Holy Spirit sounds again and again in the words of the prophets and apostles.”

Sacred Scriptures are the way to know God.
In them, the invisible God addresses us as his friends, and stays among us to invite and receive us into his company.  This is how, without seeking it or deserving it, we get to know the intimate truth, both about God and our salvation.

This truth is made known to us through the Sacred Scriptures, which, together with the sacred Tradition, “are like a mirror, in which the Church, during her pilgrim journey here on earth, contemplates God, from whom she receives everything, until she is brought to see him face to face as He is.”

What we hear during the liturgy of the word is the truth about God and the narrative of the marvels God performed among men. Its culmination is the paschal mystery of the death and resurrection of Christ, which is made present in the Eucharist.

Therefore, the central theme of the readings is always Christ.
All the readings, both of the Old and the New Testaments, are oriented toward Christ. In his wisdom, God has so brought it about that the New Testament should be hidden in the Old Testament, and that the Old Testament should be made manifest in the New. Hence, the New Testament sheds light on and explains what was earlier announced and signified with different figures in the Old Testament.

We will get to know Christ better by listening to the readings of the Holy Scriptures with pious attention. Our lives are linked to his life because we must transform ourselves into him to be pleasing to God the Father. By carefully listening to the word of God and reflecting on it, we will realize who and how Christ was, what He said and did, what He expects of us, and how we are to go about accomplishing the task He entrusted to us. Gradually, we will enter into the intimacy of God and discover the meaning of our own existence and our mission in life. And, as a consequence, we will get to know how to do—always and in everything—the will of God.

Aug 27 Wed - What are cathedrals, basilicas, shrines, and other places of worship?

 

Aug 27 Wed
What are cathedrals, basilicas, shrines, and other places of worship?

God is everywhere, but one can deal with Him in our souls in grace, in our hearts or socially, united to others.

CHURCHES
Churches are sacred buildings dedicated to divine worship, common prayer, and the celebration of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist.
The faithful have the right to enter the churches for the celebrations and their prayer.

CATHEDRAL 
A cathedral is the temple where the bishop has his seat - cathedra. It is the main church of a diocese or particular church, and from it, the bishop presides at prayer, conducts worship, and teaches. 

Unlike the cathedral, the "collegiate church" has a structure similar to that of the cathedral, although it is not the seat of the bishop.

BASILICA
It has its origin in the imperial buildings of the Romans (basilikos) re-used by the Church. In the canonical sense, "basilica" is an honorific title granted by formal concession or immemorial custom to certain significant churches. These basilicas enjoy specific privileges. They are divided into two classes: major (or patriarchal) and minor basilicas. 
There are in Rome four "major" basilicas: St. Peter's, St. John Lateran, St. Mary Major, and St. Paul Outside the Walls.

SHRINE
It is a church or other sacred place, duly approved by the bishop, to which numerous faithful go on pilgrimage for a particular reason of piety: they go to the shrine to venerate an image or relic, to gain indulgences, or because of the religious and historical-cultural significance of the place.

These can be national, if approved by the Episcopal Conference, or international, if recognized as such by the Holy See.

Some shrines are granted certain graces when the circumstances of the place and the good of the faithful who go on pilgrimage to them make it advisable.

ORATORIES AND PRIVATE CHAPELS
An Oratory is a small church for personal and common prayer for the benefit of a community or group of faithful. Liturgical acts can be celebrated in it if the one on whom the oratory depends gives his consent.

The term private chapel means a place which, by permission of the local Ordinary, is set aside for divine worship, for the convenience of one or more individuals.

Religious or conventual communities may have their own church.

PARISH CHURCH
A parish is a community of the faithful gathered around a priest who makes the diocesan bishop present in that place.
Its pastor is responsible for the administration of Baptism, Confirmation in case of danger of death, the administration of Viaticum and Anointing of the Sick, assistance at marriages, the celebration of funerals, the blessing of the baptismal font at Easter time, and the celebration of the Eucharist on Sundays and holy days of obligation.

CHAPEL
It is a place destined to divine worship for the benefit of one or more individuals, normally of small dimensions; it requires the pertinent episcopal authorization.

HERMITAGE (or ermita)
It is a small temple, normally of small dimensions, usually located on the outskirts of urban centers, in rural areas, that can have a sporadic religious use.

Aug 26 Tue - Why are so many saints martyrs, and not insurance salesmen?

 

Aug 26 Tue
Why are so many saints martyrs, and not insurance salesmen?
St Jane Frances de Chantal married a nobleman, by whom she had six children. When her husband died, she placed herself under the guidance of Saint Francis de Sales, founded the Order of the Visitation, and guided it wisely. 

In a get-together, Saint Jane asked: ‘My dear daughters, most of our saints were not martyrs. Why was this, do you think?’

After each one of the nuns had had her say, she went on: “I think it is because there is also a martyrdom of love: God keeps us alive to work for his glory, and this makes us martyrs and saints. This is the martyrdom we must suffer.”

A sister wanted to know how it is in practice.
“Give God your unconditional consent,” she said, clearly speaking about herself, “love seeks out the most intimate place of your soul, as with a sharp sword, and cuts you off even from your own self. I know of a soul cut off in this way so that she felt it more keenly than if a tyrant had cleaved her body from her soul."

And how long does this martyrdom last?
“From the moment we give ourselves up wholeheartedly to God until the moment we die,” she answered. “But this goes for people who don’t take back their offering; our Lord doesn’t make martyrs of feeble hearts and people who have little love and not much constancy; but He never forces our free will.”

Is it as painful as the physical martyrdom?
“I do not think the martyrdom of love is less painful than the other. Martyrs of love suffer infinitely more by staying alive to do God’s will than if they had to give up their lives for their faith.”

St Josemaría applied the program to the specific circumstances of ordinary people: “From time to time I have wondered which kind of martyrdom is the greater: that of the person who receives death for the faith, at the hands of God's enemies; or the martyrdom of someone who spends his years working with no other purpose than that of serving the Church and souls, and who grows old smiling, all the while passing unnoticed…"
“For me, the unspectacular martyrdom is more heroic… That is your way."

“You want to be a martyr. I will place a martyrdom within your reach: to be an apostle and not to call yourself an apostle, to be a missionary-with a mission-and not to call yourself a missionary, to be a man of God and to seem a man of the world: to pass unnoticed!"

"If you say 'enough,' you are lost. Go on, keep going. Don't stay put, don't go back, don't go off the road."

Christ is whispering it in our ears: Embrace the cross each day. As St Jerome puts it: "Not only in time of persecution or when we have the chance of martyrdom, but in all circumstances, in everything we do and think, in everything we say, let us change what we used to be and let us be what we now are, reborn in Christ." 

Aug 25 Mon - What is a dude?

 

Aug 25 Mon
What is a dude?
It seems that the term “dude” was coined in reaction to a particular fad among young men in New York City in the late 19th century.
This crowd had a certain way of dressing — usually over-the-top and fancy — and leaned into an Anglophile lifestyle that was often perceived by many as fake or trying-too-hard.

Eventually, these men became known as "dudes," the unsophisticated American who "stuck a feather in his cap" pretending to appear as a kind of European "dandy" in high society.

In the mid-20th century, the term "dude" coincided with the zoot suit — also very flashy and full of fabric — and popular with men of color. They were called "dude" as a derogatory term.

And then Mexican American and Black people adopted it among themselves, and it became a marker of solidarity and connection.

From there, it started to become less associated with being fake and wearing fancy dress. Other subgroups began to pick it up, particularly surfers and skaters in California.

The word, which began implying a fake pretense, lost many of its connotations, but still means to show familiarity with a person. Maybe you don't use it with your boss or a stranger, but with your friends or acquaintances to show that you're in the same group.
And don't be fooled — even with the rise of "bro", "dude" still reigns supreme, according to a recent survey.

In Christian life, we must be “authentic,” not fakes. We must imitate the naturalness of Christ's life in our interior life and the apostolate. Our naturalness is not mystery or secrecy.

The difference between Christians and the rest of mankind is not a matter of nationality, language, or customs, says an ancient writer. Christians do not live apart in separate cities of their own, speak any special dialect, or practice any eccentric way of life. Our life is as simple as that. Its oddness is that it is not odd. We strive to live by our faith, without affectation of any kind. Our way of life and what we think are manifest to all.

Naturalness is manifested in inner simplicity and in our dealings with those around us: without secrets but without proclaiming intimacy. We must make our faith present, without boasting, when necessary.

But we can never make concessions in essential matters, nor hide our light, in a false attempt to adapt ourselves to the environment around us.

“Perhaps at times our Christian conduct may cause surprise among people who are far from God: you must have the courage then to be faithful, have the strength of spirit to carry your own environment around with you. For it would be a very sad thing if anyone looking at the way Catholics in society behave, concluded that they were sheepish and easily imposed upon.
Never forget that our Master was, indeed, is, perfect Man."
We need strength of character to lead a Christian life with all its consequences. 

Aug 24 Sun - Will only a few be saved?

 

Aug 24 Sun
Will only a few be saved?
Somebody asked Our Lord that simple question. He meant: How many people will receive the salvation you have come to bring us? Or, more simply, how many will go to heaven?

Christ answered with a parable and the corresponding explanation.

Salvation is pictured as the kingdom of God and as an estate or home. To get in, you must enter through a “narrow gate.” Inside, many are participating in a meal.

The Lord, the master of the house, had gone outside to lock the “narrow” gate of his home. Outside are people who were not “strong enough” to enter through the narrow gate previously. They are knocking and asking to be admitted. The master refuses them entry, saying he does not know them.

The central question for us Christians is, what will exclude us from the feast of the kingdom of God?

The answer is ‘evildoing.’ Those who are not admitted are “evildoers.” It does not matter if you are a Jew who heard Jesus preaching or a Christian who attends a religious service every week. Salvation comes from Christ, but if you are an evildoer, you don’t know Christ, and He doesn’t know you.

The “evildoers” of Christ’s parable are those who commit culpable and avoidable sins.

The trials which our loving Father sends us (the narrow gate) help us to become “strong enough.”

And the Gospel tells us what we must do to become the opposite of evildoers: strong doers of good.

Thus, we must struggle to achieve mastery of the soul over the body. This struggle is a training to become virtuous.

In this struggle, through self-denial, the soul—the rational intellect and the will—tries to exercise control over the body. It is like physical training. But there is also a mental training (interior mortification).

Our Lord said, “he who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Mt 10:38).

It is the struggle of our soul over our animal nature. Our animal nature is not bad, since God created our bodies, too. But our desire for pleasure and the avoidance of pain, our changing emotions, and our powerful passions pull us in the wrong direction.

As soon as we set out to do the will of God (to “enter by the narrow gate”), we subordinate our desires to right reason and the law of God. This is done both to avoid sin and to express love for God and neighbor.

If we do this, we begin to overcome vices and build virtues.

We cannot accomplish this without grace, which God gives us abundantly in the Sacraments. But unless we make the effort, this growth cannot occur. Thus, being “strong enough” to enter through the narrow gate of salvation means making the effort with the help of God’s grace.

The struggle we must undertake begins with the effort to avoid mortal sin and to obey the precepts of the Church.

Aug 23 Sat - Why does God ask me to love Him?

 

Aug 23 Sat
Why does God ask me to love Him?
All holiness and perfection of our soul lies in our love for Jesus Christ our God, who is our Redeemer and our supreme good. As a consequence of the love of God, we must acquire and nurture all the virtues that make a man perfect.

Can God ask for your love? Does not God deserve all your love?
From all eternity, He has loved you. And in this line, He speaks to you: “O man, consider carefully that I first loved you. You had not yet appeared in the light of day, nor did the world yet exist, but already I loved you. From all eternity I have loved you.”

Since God knows that favors persuade you, He wished to commit you to his love through his gifts: “I want to catch you with snares, those chains of love in which men allow themselves to be entrapped, so that you will love me.”

And all the gifts that He bestowed on you were given to this purpose. He gave you a soul, made you in his likeness, and endowed you with memory, intellect, and will; He gave you a body equipped with the senses; for you, He created heaven and earth and an abundance of things. He made all these things out of love for you, so that all creation might serve all men, and you in turn, might love God out of gratitude for so many gifts.

But God did not want to give you only beautiful gifts; the truth is that to win for Himself your love, He went so far as to give you the fullness of Himself. The eternal Father went so far as to give you his only Son. When He saw that we were all dead through sin and deprived of his grace, what did He do? Compelled, as the Apostle says, by the superabundance of his love for us, He sent his beloved Son to make reparation for us and to call us back to a sinless life.

God wanted to spare you from the punishment you deserved. He did so by giving you His Son, whom He did not spare from the Cross. Thus, He granted you at once every good: grace, love, and heaven; all these goods are certainly inferior to the Son. He who did not spare his own Son, but handed him over for all of us: how could He fail to give us all good things along with his Son?

“Once we realize this, we are immediately reminded of our wretchedness and our personal failings. But they should not dishearten us; we should not become pessimistic and put our ideals aside. Our Lord is calling us, in our present state, to share his life and make an effort to be holy."

The Sacrifice of Christ on Calvary is a proof of His Love, which invites you to imitate him. Your resolutions to be faithful, to correspond, will become a reality if you frequently contemplate Jesus Crucified. An ever-timely program for you and me.

Aug 22 Fri - Should I expect God to teach me to pray?

 

Aug 22 Fri
Should I expect God to teach me to pray?
“Lord, teach us to pray.” We are created for prayer, for that intimate conversation with God, to walk with Him always.  But we don’t know how to pray as we ought. We need to be instructed.

Implicit in the appeal of every disciple is that there’s a right way to pray – and thus a wrong one as well. Jesus has come to give us the way of prayer.

Thus, Jesus gives us the first and last word of prayer: FATHER. “When you pray, say: Father.” God, who is eternally Father, has introduced us into His Son. Our being His children is the heart of all prayer.

Prayer is, first of all, the ascent of our heart and mind to the Father’s wisdom and love.

Saint Josemaría experienced this gift of prayer when, travelling in a streetcar in Madrid, he suddenly felt a clarity about his sonship: “I had learned to call God Father, as in the Our Father, from my childhood. But feeling, seeing, being amazed at that desire of God that we are his children… that was on the street and in a streetcar. For an hour or an hour and a half, I don’t know, I had to shout Abba, Pater!”

Father, my Father! Even if we go no further than these words, spending all our time saying it with faith and love, then we have prayed well.

Our prayer ascends to the Father so that His grace will also descend to us. The word “pray” really means to ask. Indeed, prayer is associated with petition. Still, our Lord reminds us of the confidence we should have in asking, a confidence that comes only from knowing God as our Father.

In a parable about a not-very-good friend who is won over by persistence. Jesus concludes with a surprising but logical statement: “If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?”

Our Lord introduces the gift of the Spirit. How much more will the Father in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him? 

Perhaps we don’t pray as often or as incessantly as we should because we sense that the Father has more in mind than to give us just what we ask for. He allows us to be in need so that we approach Him in our nothingness and so that He can then begin the work of His grace upon us.

The prayer of petition must contain the willingness to be changed, to receive the Spirit Who blows where He wills, the Spirit Who will lead us where we do not yet want to go. Prayer isn’t approaching the divine vending machine and requesting what we want. It’s an entrance into a relationship and conversation with the Father Who knows what we need more than we can imagine. 

Aug 21 Thu - In the Mass, is the Liturgy of the Word important?

 

Aug 21 Thu
In the Mass, is the Liturgy of the Word important?
Only God knew with how impatiently the disciples gathered in the Upper Room were waiting for the arrival of the Lord. They did not know why or what, but they were sure something very important was going to happen. The Master had told them to prepare everything for the celebration of the Passover.

When Jesus arrived, they received him as usual, perhaps with a mixture of that sweet and gentle fear that the presence of the supernatural produces in the human soul. Surely, they must have been grateful to God for having given them the chance of sitting at the table once more with the Person for whom mankind had been yearning for centuries. And He addressed himself to them before anyone else. They could not explain why he had chosen them; there was no human explanation for it. But they constantly gave thanks to God for the election. Their countenances showed their intimate joy.

Had they known their unworthiness, they would have fled in shame. But they also knew that Jesus came to heal the sick and the weak. So, there they remained, perhaps feeling more in need than anybody else. After all, it was the Master who sought them and chose them. He knew pretty well what he was doing. Their role was simply to allow themselves to be loved and to exert every effort to correspond to that love.

The Master began to speak at length, as He had spoken on other occasions. But this time, there was such an atmosphere of intimacy.
In the Mass, after having welcomed him with joy and purified our love through our contrition, we are ready to listen to Jesus. Like the apostles before the Last Supper, we too will sit down. The Master will talk to us through the sacred readings of the Mass. By faith we know that when the Scriptures are read in the Church, God himself is speaking to his people, and Christ, present in his word, is proclaiming the Gospel.

Besides his Eucharistic presence, “in another very genuine way, Christ is also present in the Church as she preaches. For the Gospel which she proclaims is the word of God, and it is only in the name of Christ, the Incarnate Word of God, and only by his authority and with his help that it is preached, so that there might be ‘one flock resting secure in one shepherd.’” 

The mystery of salvation is announced in the Mass with the proclamation of the word. Afterwards, during the Eucharistic liturgy, what has been announced becomes reality. This way, the bond between the word and the Eucharistic action (which culminates with the Consecration) becomes evident. Word and action, therefore, are united. The sacraments are sacraments of faith, and faith has its origin and sustenance in the word.

Only if we receive the message with fitting dispositions during the readings shall we be present at the Eucharistic Prayer with the necessary faith and love to offer ourselves with Christ and to be intimately united to him during Communion.

Aug 20 Wed - Should I listen to God’s voice and accept the mission He has entrusted to me?

 

Aug 20 Wed
Should I listen to God’s voice and accept the mission He has entrusted to me?

Bishop Barron tells young people in Rome to follow God and reject worldly goods, calling on them to “find their mission” and pursue the Lord “into the depths.”

“God has an idea of the saint you were meant to be.” He emphasized that modern culture promotes individualism at the expense of God’s journey with us.

Throughout his speech, Barron referenced biblical figures -including Peter, Abraham, Jacob, and Jonah- to highlight the challenges and rewards of answering God’s call.

There’s nothing more important in our lives than discerning our mission, Barron told the crowd.

He suggested that anyone discerning their mission should start by asking oneself, “Whom do I worship? What voice do I listen to? And what’s the mission that voice is giving to me?”

Comparing the ruins of Rome with the present Catholic Church, Barron said: “Don’t believe them when they tell you religion is in decline. … What’s in us is greater than anything in the world.” 

“Where are the mighty signs of Roman power? Think of the Colosseum. Think of the Forum. Think of the Palatine Hill. Think of the Circus Maximus. What are they? They’re ruins.” 

“But where’s the great empire that was announced by Peter the Apostle?” he continued. “It’s all over the world, on every continent. It’s alive. And where is the successor of Peter, who was put to death in the Circus of Nero and buried away on the Vatican Hill? Where’s his successor?”

“I saw him last night, didn’t you? Riding around St. Peter’s Square,” the bishop said to thunderous applause. 

Barron warned against living in “the little shallows” of material desires and urged attendees to pursue a higher calling.

He paraphrased Abraham’s journey as our own: “Leave the country of who you are now. Leave that boring space of the old self, preoccupied with its own freedom, and go to the land I will show you. What’s that land? It’s the saint you’re meant to be.”

He warned the assembly not to worship money, status, or family. “If I make them my central preoccupation, I will fall apart on the inside — I will disintegrate and I will sow disintegration around me.”

“You become what you worship.”

“We know the call to radical love, and the way to go there.” “But we tend to go the other way.” Ignoring that call leads to internal and external storms. “Refusing your mission is bad for you and the people around you.”

Barron posed and answered the question “What happens when we accept the mission?” “You don’t know who you are until you find your mission.”

He concluded by linking the lives of Peter, Paul, and Jesus, each of whom embraced self-sacrifice for the good of others. 

“That’s the same call they’re giving to all of you,” Barron said.

Aug 19 Tue What should I do with my great dreams?

 

Aug 19 Tue
What should I do with my great dreams?
Through the action of the liturgy, our Mother the Church invites us to consider the emptiness of a life without God. Without you, Lord, nothing is holy, nothing has value. Then she invokes God's mercy, asking that Jesus, our Shepherd, may guide us to everlasting life by helping us to use wisely the blessings He has given to the world.

We should be involved in the affairs of this world: God has placed them at our disposal precisely so that we may make them holy and upright. Our noble human aspirations nevertheless need to be channeled, so that they don't take us away from God but rather lead us steadily towards him.

Regulating the affairs of this world doesn't mean impoverishing them, but keeping them in perspective and correcting them, while never losing sight of the supernatural destiny. Thus, we assume a human and divine adventure, co-redeeming with Christ, and participating in Jesus' impatient longing to spread the fire He came to cast on earth. Our ambition is great indeed: to gain the whole world for God. We need to be on fire, to be a guide, a chief, a leader! To compel, and push, and draw others, with our example and with our word and with our knowledge and with our authority.

We must have great ambitions, to desire with God's desire. You should foster those divine desires in your heart and long to bring many souls to Christ; your weakness counts on the power of God. You cannot excuse yourself by saying: What can I do in the face of the great multitude of mankind? Be like leaven. This is what reveals the splendor of your power. Don't be discouraged ... your light will not go out; rather, you will overcome all difficulties.

Among the great desires that God has placed in our hearts, for us to foster and so give him glory, is our interest in our job or profession. Our work, sanctified by our self-giving in God's service, becomes a means of sanctification. 

“Rectify your intention, then, and be sure you acquire all the professional prestige you can for the service of God and souls. The Lord counts on this, too."

“Our work is a professional occupation which we carry out in the middle of the world. Therefore, when reminding you of the need to work, I also remind you of the need to work well. It is not just a matter of filling in the hours but of being technically and professionally competent."

May our Mother Mary keep alive our longing for holiness and apostolate, and help us always maintain our interest and effort in our daily work. “Place on your desk, St. Josemaría advised us, in your room, in your wallet, a picture of our Lady, and look at it when you begin your work, while you are doing it, and when you finish it. She will obtain, I can assure you, the strength for you to turn your task into a loving dialogue with God." 

Aug 18 Mon - Where does charity begin?

 

Aug 18 Mon
Where does charity begin?
Heard in a get-together. As in the Gospel of Martha and Mary, we must work like Martha and at the same time be contemplatives like Mary, contemplatives in the middle of the world.

To achieve this, we have no other weapons than prayer, and work turned into prayer. Not just vocal or mental prayer, but we must transform our work itself into prayer. This is a real commitment. Not even the experience of our weakness, of not reaching that ideal, should discourage us, but strengthen us.

“God is love.” If we do not love others, we do not love God. These two are inseparable. We must truly love people: first, our family, and then everyone in due proportion. Yet nothing in the world must be foreign to us. We should think of those who suffer throughout the world, both with visible and hidden sufferings. The whole world is ours. As Saint Paul says: “All things are yours.” This should not load us with anxiety, but move us to prayer. 

Charity begins with the one beside us. St. Josemaría clarified that love for others begins with understanding them. Charity means recognizing the goodness in each person, so that when we look at someone, we first see the good in them. Only then will we look at a person’s faults through the lens of affection and the desire to help.

As St. Josemaría said, applied now to all of the Work: “Everything is done, and everything remains to be done.” What has been accomplished serves as a handle, a motivation, and a beginning of what is yet to come. We are Christians, but each of us must become more Christ — ipse Christus.

Someone asked, as a caregiver, how we can bring a culture of care to a throw-away society?
The root of the culture of care lies in the value we give to the person, both at a human level and the supernatural. We must see in each person a child of God. If we value people, we value care. It is not just about service, but about personal growth, striving to become what we ought to be. 

How can we live more aware of Heaven while here on Earth?
Through the Eucharist, every time we receive Christ, we are already in Heaven. The Eucharist is Heaven on earth, here, in our hearts. This is a great consolation. We carry inside nothing less than God Himself.

When facing a hostile or difficult setting, above all, we must pray for those beside us. That effort is never lost. Friendship is a form of love: it means truly wanting the good for others. It takes time, attention, and understanding. When genuine friendship is built through time and interaction, deeper communication and trust can follow. Nothing is wasted.

And how should we deal with gender ideology and harmful sexual practices?
We must combine love with saying the truth about what is good for the person. A child must feel deeply loved, and, at the same time, we must gently show that the path they have chosen is not good; that a better, possible path exists. The key is to truly love.

Aug 17 Sun - Who comes first, God or parents?

 

Aug 17 Sun
Who comes first, God or parents?
If there is a conflict between God’s will and any other will, including the will of your own family of birth or marriage, whose will do you think you should follow?

We should never seek conflicts between our faith and our family, but what kinds of conflicts can we expect?

Your family might reject the Gospel and disown you if you become a Christian.

Your family might object to your taking the demands of your Christian faith seriously.

Your family might object to the vocation you think God is calling you to.

Here we will look at the family through the Catechism’s summary points (2247-2257).

When it comes to respect and obedience, God comes first, then our parents, then others who have legitimate authority.

Do I put God first in my life, asking what He wants, and then doing my best to make that real?

Do I defend marriage and the family to the extent that I am able?

Am I living in a state contrary to marriage and the family through cohabitation, or refusal to have children without a serious reason, or contraception, or “re-marriage”?

A great deal of the happiness and good order of individuals and society depends on whether marriages and families are healthy.

If I want to be married someday, am I becoming the kind of person who can be a good spouse and father or mother?

If I am married and a father or mother, do I take my vocation seriously and give it my best attention?

“Children owe their parents respect, gratitude, just obedience, and assistance.” Brothers and sisters owe one another respect. While respect always remains, our obligation to obey our parents ends when we are adults.
Depending on my age, have I thought about what I owe my parents, and do I give it to them?
If I am an adult, in what ways do I honor my parents?

“Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children in the faith, prayer, and all the virtues. They have the duty to provide as far as possible for the physical and spiritual needs of their children.”
If I have children, am I doing what I can to raise them in the Catholic faith and to provide for their physical and spiritual needs?

“Parents should respect and encourage their children’s vocations,” but they do not determine their vocations. A Christian’s first duty is to follow Christ.
Am I open to my children discovering their vocation and living it? Do I pray for this?

Public authority must respect the rights of individual persons, while citizens have the duty to build up the common good.
Am I a good citizen in my community?

Being a good citizen means standing up for what is right.
Do I adequately inform myself of what is going on in society and the government, and participate in shaping my society according to what is right?

Am I willing to shed my blood in defense of the Gospel?

Aug 16 Sat - Is Jesus God?

 

Aug 16 Sat
Is Jesus God?
Have you heard this from someone? “It’s absurd to say Jesus is God, since He never made the claim himself!”

Unbelievers won’t be convinced of the divinity of Christ, no matter what.

Those who admire Jesus as merely a “great moral teacher” note that Jesus never said the words, “I am God!” But they miss the forest for the trees.

A simple man who said that sort of things would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic or the Devil’s helper. You must make your choice.

When did Jesus make it clear that He is God incarnate?

Just to mention a few. In various moments of the life of Jesus, God the Father called him “Son.”
St. John attested that he wrote his Gospel “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.”

John asserts that the preexistent Word, who has been from all eternity and is a Person who coexists with God, for He is God himself. All things were made through him. He is the fount of eternal life, and He enlightens all mankind through his revelation. The Word is the Son of God, called the “only-begotten of the Father” and the “only-begotten Son.” The Word, who existed from all eternity, came to the world and “was made flesh” in order to bring grace and truth to humanity. The Word made flesh is Jesus Christ (cf. Jn 1:1–18).
St. John repeats several times in his Gospel that Jesus is “the only Son of God.” 

“I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35) Gifts that only come from God: Exodus 16:4 and the manna, the bread from heaven.

“I am the light of the world.” (John 8:12) Jesus is the Creator’s illumination. (“Let there be light,” Genesis 1:3.)

“I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7) The only way to enter the Kingdom, through the ultimate gatekeeper.

“I am the good shepherd.” (John 10:11) Jesus presents Himself as the protector of His people, a role traditionally associated with God’s care and guidance.

“I and the Father are one.” (John 10:30) This declaration asserts Jesus’ unity with God the Father, implying that He shares the same divine essence. (An allusion to the Sh’ma of Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.”)

“The Father is in me, and I am in the Father.” (John 10:38). The unity between Jesus and God the Father. (The Sh’ma again.)

“I am the resurrection and the life. (John 11:25) Jesus’ power over death and His ability to grant eternal life. (Isaiah 26:19: “Your dead shall live; their corpses shall rise.”)

“I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) Jesus is the only path to God.

“All that the Father has is mine.” (John 16:15)

I believe the clearest statement by Christ of His divinity is John 8:58. “Very truly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I am.”

Is Jesus a lunatic, a liar, or is He truly the Lord? You must choose. 

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

 

Aug 15 Fri
What is the Assumption of Our Lady?
The Blessed Virgin Mary, beautiful and pure, was preserved from Original Sin and filled with graces by God’s design. Inside her womb, Jesus Christ dwelt. We honor her with the highest honor a creature can receive.

Christ is the first to rise from the dead, and the rest of us will arise in “proper order,” at his second coming.

In Mary’s case, the proper order for her was her Assumption into heaven, body and soul, since she never sinned, and so it was not fitting for her body to undergo corruption.

What is the doctrine of the Assumption we celebrate today?

“The Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death” (CCC 966).

“The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son’s Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians” (CCC 966).

We properly show this special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary by participating in this liturgical feast, and through the Marian prayers, especially the Rosary.

Why not say 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 Queen Mother.

To travel faithfully the "sure path" that our Lady has prepared for each of us, we go to her with childlike confidence. We ask, “Set our poor hearts on fire, so that we will love God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit with our whole being;" so that, by God's grace, we will deepen in our loving contemplation of the intimate life of the Most Holy Trinity. Mother, obtain for us the strength we need to follow with docility the inspirations of the Holy Spirit, the sanctifier of our souls.

“Inspire us with a great Love for the Church and the Pope, and make us live in full obedience to all their teachings. And since your prayer is all-powerful in the presence of God, allow us to choose you as special protectress, so that, after having lived a holy life on earth, we may have the joy of praising the Most Blessed Trinity with you forever in heaven. Amen."

Only by offending God do we lose that joy, because sin is the fruit of selfishness, and selfishness is the root of sadness. But neither God nor his Mother can ever forget us. If we repent, if an act of sorrow springs from our heart, if we purify ourselves in the holy sacrament of penance, God comes out to meet us and forgive us. Then there can be no sadness whatsoever. 

Aug 14 Thu - What is the Opening Prayer or Collect?

 

Aug 14 Thu
What is the Opening Prayer or Collect?
In the Mass, the Collect is the first prayer that is proper to the priest. 

It is not enough to have adored and praised God, and to have asked for mercy. We also need a concise formula that summarizes the petitions or intentions of the celebration.

The Opening Prayer is also called the Collect because it sums up and gathers together all the intentions of the day’s sacrifice. It is also the prayer of the plebs collecta, the prayer of the assembled people.

“Let us pray,” the celebrant intones, asking the people to join him, for this is a public and collective prayer. 

We stand and observe a brief silence to help us realize that we are in God’s presence and to recall our petitions. 

The priest then says the Opening Prayer in the attitude called orans. This gesture was in use among the Jews, in the attitude of one who expects to receive a gift. 

We ask that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ our Lord; that God may free us from sin and bring us the joy that lasts forever, and many personal needs, material and spiritual. Our prayer to God the Father will then be not merely an individual petition but an expression and fulfillment of the unity of the faithful gathered through Christ in the Holy Spirit.

The Opening Prayer always begins with an invocation to God. It is followed either by a statement of the grounds on which our confidence that our prayer will be granted is based. The petition follows. Then comes the conclusion, which is invariably based upon a request for the intercession of our sole Mediator, Jesus Christ our Lord, and upon homage to the indivisible Trinity. 

Despite the variety of formulas, we always ask for the same thing: what is essential in our Christian life. He promised to hear our prayer. Whatever we ask of him will be granted if it is good for our sanctity. 

It is now time to unite our minds and hearts with the supplication that the priest directs to God on behalf of all.

With the “Amen,” we make the prayer our own and give our assent. Its translation could be: “Truly be so!” or “So be it!” or “Be it done so!” The Jews used it to agree on a contract and also to express a wish. 

Amen is the last word of the New Testament. It is the last word, too, in holiness, which is man’s perfect adherence to the will of God. It is to say, “As you wish,” or “My Lord and my God: into your hands I abandon the past and the present and the future, what is small and what is great, what amounts to a little and what amounts to a lot, things temporal and things eternal.” I say Amen to all that you ask of me.

With that Amen, therefore, we acknowledge sincerely our total dependence on God. It is only fitting that we exert the effort to pronounce it decisively. 

Aug 13 Wed - What about changing one’s gender?

 

Aug 13 Wed
What about changing one’s gender?
Gender ideology takes up an old theory presented in a way that is attractive to many people today: the concept that the body is a tool that we can re-engineer at will.

Thus, the body becomes an external feature. "I dwell in this body, but I observe it from a distance." 

However, the body is an integral part of the person, not his property.

Whoever manipulates the body not only changes the exterior, but also one’s identity. Gender ideology would never have succeeded without some medical-technical development that allowed this manipulation. However, there is a big difference between improving something about the body and intervening in the person's identity...

Thanks to modern medicine, I may be able to change my body, even my external sex. Yet more and more people who are called "trans", wish to reverse their "transition." This shows that the body is not a neutral shell in which I simply dwell: “I am my body.”

The human being is not a machine whose parts can be changed at will. The body is an integral part of the person, not one’s property. Even if they say: By modifying my body, I also modify my identity. I don't change a tool, I transform myself.

What is the Christian vision in this context?
With death, my body disappears, but I remain. Whoever wounds the body, wounds the whole person. If I intervene in my body as if it were someone else's territory, I become commander and troop, which is an absurd idea.

Christian life is a mission, not a utopia. Utopia means that it is never achieved. What Jesus asked of us in the Sermon on the Mount may seem practically impossible, but growing to reach that goal makes sense because He gives us strength. With each task, we are given the strength to achieve it.

Thus, some look at the apostolic celibacy only in relation to functional aspects, for example, because they have more time. But is that really a sufficient reason?

Of course, there are functional arguments: a person without a spouse and children is more independent and less exposed to blackmail. If I have a family, I am more vulnerable to pressures. I must think of my children and my wife. That is why celibacy has its uses, it is true.

However, it is an obligation that could not be lived if Christ had not lived it as well. Not only is it possible to live it, but, deep down, nothing is missing in doing so. Whoever renounces marriage receives another gift, not less, but more, the hundredfold that the Gospel speaks about.

This wonderful gift is often revealed only when it is put into practice. It is a challenge that comes from Christ Himself, which He Himself will fulfill. That is the deep hope the Church speaks about.

Moreover, the Church is not finished, but in a continuous process of formation and expansion. The history of salvation has not ended today. That is why I say to young people: "Now it is your turn! You have something to do at God's request."
Pic: The Annunciation. 

Aug 12 Tue - What are the bases of the Church’s social teaching?

 

Aug 12 Tue
What are the bases of the Church’s social teaching?
The Christian message has a social dimension, and the Church encourages its diffusion and implementation as an integral part of the Christian conception of life.

The main task of the Church is the salvation of souls. Man, however, can reach salvation only if he strives to establish in his society the order of justice and charity that God desires. During his earthly life, Christ—while emphasizing that his mission was the eternal salvation of humanity—showed concern for addressing material needs.

Moreover, Christian revelation leads us to a deeper understanding of the laws of social life. The Church receives from the Gospel the full revelation of the truth about man. She fulfills her mission of announcing the Gospel and teaches man his own dignity and his vocation to form a communion of persons. She unveils the demands of justice and peace, according to divine wisdom.

The Church’s social teaching is more than a collection of moral exhortations and prohibitions, though it certainly includes both. The Church’s social teaching ‘describes’ the truth and reality before it ‘prescribes’ what we should do about it.

Over the years, the Church has identified what she calls the four “permanent principles” of Catholic social teaching: The dignity of the human person, solidarity, subsidiarity, and the common good. If one understands these principles and how to apply them, then Catholic social teaching becomes a powerful framework for thinking through some of the thorniest problems of contemporary life. Begin with general principles and then apply them to the particulars of public life. Sounds simple, right?

Not quite.

Knowing the principles that should guide our moral action and applying them is important, but in an age marked by skepticism and relativism, many do not accept these principles. It is one thing for the Church to speak, for example, of “human dignity” or “natural law,” and the faithful accepting these on the authority of the Church. It is another thing to be able to defend, justify, and propose the principles to a world that doesn’t acknowledge the Church’s authority.

Understanding the Church’s teachings on politics or economics requires more than simply applying abstract principles. It requires us to know political life and economic activity.

Grace builds on and perfects nature. We must, then, pay close attention to nature –to the way things are– to better understand how to apply the principles that the Church has developed through two millennia of reflection on Scripture and Tradition.

The solidity the Church provides is based on her conformity to and reflection of the reality of the created world and man’s fallen state.

Accordingly, there are no concrete circumstances in which the Church cannot bring the presence of the Risen Christ. This, ultimately, is the surest proof and guarantor of the truth of the Church’s social teaching: she brings to every circumstance the adequate response to the desire in every human heart for goodness, truth, and life, namely, she brings Christ himself.

Aug 11 Mon - How can I imitate the purity of Mother Mary?

 

Aug 11 Mon
How can I imitate the purity of Mother Mary?
Six keys to appreciating her purity.

You know as well as I do that chastity is possible, but it requires a bit of struggle.  

God loves our struggle. We will always be victorious because He never abandons us.

How are we facing up to this battle? You know very well that a fight kept up from the beginning is a fight already won. Fight immediately, as soon as you are aware of the first sparks of passion, and even before. 
And then, let us ask the Mother of God to help us fight by imitating her virtues.

The purity of the Mother of God is a kind of counter-revolution in a society where sex is commercialized and reduced to short-lived pleasure.

1. Purity is not repression.

Mary's purity is not repression, but fullness. Conceived without original sin, she represents the integrity of the human being before God.

In a society that hypersexualizes everything, her example invites us to see the body as a temple, not as an object of consumption.

2. Purity is a radical 'yes' to God.

The perpetual virginity (before, during, and after childbirth) of Mary is not a 'no' to love, but a radical 'yes' to God.

In the face of the culture of 'anything goes' in relationships, Mary teaches us that true friendship and intimacy arise from spiritual, not just physical, self-giving.

3. Full fruitfulness comes from the soul.

In an age of media liberal sexualism, Mary’s purity belies the erroneous myth that happiness depends solely on sex.

She, the Mother of God, shows us that full fruitfulness comes from the soul: she gave human life to Jesus through her faith, abandonment in the Will of God, acceptance of His plans, and knowledge of Christ, who overcomes sin.

4. The Virgin Mary helps us to understand that a person is more than his body.

Mary helps us to combat the tendency to consider people as “material objects”. While society reduces people to desirable bodies, her humility and modesty remind us that real beauty begins in the interior.

Her 'fiat' (be it done unto me) was an act of pure freedom, free from external manipulation.

5. Mary, model of chastity.

Living in a world of dating apps and dehumanizing social pressures, the Virgin Mary is our model of chastity.

Her purity does not isolate but unites: in marriage, priestly orders, or consecrated life, she invites us to establish bonds based on mutual respect, not on immediate gratification.

6. Mary purifies us of cultural impurities.

Confronting the hyper sexualization that affects many, in mind and spirit, Mary offers healing.

Praying and meditating on her Immaculate Heart purifies us of cultural impurities; fostering an integrated, responsible sexuality, open to life in abundance, as the gift of God that it is.

The purity of the Virgin Mary is not a distant ideal, but an ever-present call that restores us to friendship with Jesus.

In this society saturated with provocations, let us follow her to rediscover the fullness of love to which we are called since our baptism. 

Aug 10 Sun - Should a Christian always be vigilant?

 

 

 

 

Aug 10 Sun
Should a Christian always be vigilant?
“Be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival.” The uncertainty of the moment of our personal Judgment should lead us to live as true children of our Father god, fighting to avoid lukewarmness entering our lives.

We will meet Christ. This will occur either at Christ’s second coming, if we are alive then, or at the moment of our death, which we cannot foresee.

We must be prepared for this meeting. Without fear, because Christ is at our side.

Christ is giving us good news here. He is saying this returning master is pleased, like one returning home from a wedding, so happy that he will do the unimaginable, which is to serve his servants. On our part, we don’t want to do anything to disturb our master’s happiness by being “asleep” or unprepared.

Ours should be a vigilant love. Throughout the day, we must fulfill our duties; time is short, and the Lord may visit us at any moment.

Christ is warning us that He will return, and we should welcome this warning, just as we would be glad to know that a thief is coming at a certain time in the night so we can be prepared. To be prepared, we must examine our conscience daily, to rectify and begin again.

Like in a sports competition, we must aim higher every time because, in this race, the only goal is reaching the glory and happiness of heaven. If we do not grab it, nothing else would be worthwhile.

To “gird your loins” means to tie up your long, loose-fitting lower garments so you are prepared for physical work or even for battle. We are at work now building Christ’s kingdom and battling evil, especially in ourselves. If we are doing these things, we are ready to meet Christ at every moment. To be ready is to care for little things, like just washing some dishes, because it is our present duty.

Some prefer to leave it for later…Tomorrow, they say. That word might be prudence, occasionally, but more often is the excuse of losers. Where would we be if the Apostles had delayed the spreading of the Gospel “for later”? If they had waited “for more favorable circumstances”?
In this attitude of waiting, death would have taken over, and they would have appeared before God with empty hands. They would not have accomplished the reason for their divine calling. They would not have accomplished themselves.
How short is our time to grow in holiness…our time to love!

Being ready certainly means to remain in a state of grace, meaning to be free of mortal sin, and to return to a state of grace immediately through the Sacrament of Reconciliation if we should fail.

As good servants, we must rely on prayer and practice small mortifications to be attentive to God’s requests. Our Lord warned us. Servants will be rewarded or punished according to their merits. 

Aug 9 Sat - Is there any resemblance between the Tour de France and interior life?

 Aug 9 Sat
Is there any resemblance between the Tour de France and interior life?

Last week, 166 men rode their bicycles 1,691 miles. Among those miles, they climbed 127,950 feet through the rugged mountains of the Pyrenees and the Alps.

Come the final laps in Paris this Sunday, they will have ridden 2,075 miles, with 172,240 feet of climbing. That is 32 miles of vertical climbing. This does not include hundreds of miles of ups and downs on the roads that do not count as “climbing.”

They ride in fog and rain. Nothing stops the peloton, the name given to the pack of riders.

It is perhaps the most grueling sporting event in the world.

It is a physical test to be sure, but perhaps even more, it is a mental test.

Imagine getting on your bike and going full blast for five hours and then getting up the next day to do it again, and again, and again, and again, for 21 days.

This is the interior life: getting up every day and making your morning offering, saying the Rosary, attending Mass, spending time in mental prayer, examining your conscience, enduring mortifications, sitting in the presence of God, and doing this all day every day—not for 21 days but for the rest of your life.

There is a mental toughness called for in order to combat laziness and lukewarmness. Is this all there is? I have to do this every day until I die, even if I “get nothing out of it”? It can be painful.

Yes, cyclists suffer. You cannot say that they love the pain and suffering, but they certainly embrace it.

St. Josemaría Escrivá, a master of the interior life, said, “Blessed be pain, sanctified be pain.” Catholics know about pain and its uses. Most of the world does not, not even our Evangelical brethren. Pain is not a test; it is a tool for sanctification, for ourselves and for others. Yes, you can take pain relievers, but we know that pain is not meaningless. Even bone cancer in a child is pregnant with meaning and purpose.

Martha’s problem was not that she was busy but that she was busy without the proper intention. We meet Him in the everyday mundane. In her work, she could have met Him just as Mary met Him at His feet.

The supernatural goal we are aiming at is difficult to achieve; it requires us to fight, to be determined, and to be strong. It demands fortitude.

If we respond as we are asked by God, we will be given all the grace and strength we need. We will be able to overcome every obstacle and finally reach our goal of holiness.

We must offer our ordinary work, our pain, and our worries for ourselves and for others. If we do so with the proper intention, what is an ordinary, everyday thing—like pedaling a bike or working at a desk—becomes a path to holiness, a work of God.

This is what we are called to do each and every day.

Some excerpts from Austin Ruse

Aug 8 Fri - Can Jesus visit me?

 

Aug 8 Fri
Can Jesus visit me?
Two sisters, Martha and Mary, with their brother Lazarus, all close to Jesus, invited Him into their home. There, they made him a supper. While Martha served, Mary took a pound of costly ointment of pure nard and anointed Jesus' feet, wiping them with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment (John 12:2-3).

Magdalene had met evil face to face, like many among us. Her sins controlled her life as the demons took greater control over her. Desperate for help, she turned to Jesus. Falling at his feet pleading for freedom, Jesus declared, “Your sins are forgiven.” (Luke 7:48) From that moment on, Magdalene became a disciple.

Such an account cannot be trivialized, reduced to sins of the flesh. St. Gregory says that the seven demons are the universal and deadly sins of pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony, and lust. We all may have a bit of these bad tendencies.

In an instant, with a simple confession, Jesus freed her from that covenant, removed all her sins, and invited her to follow Him. A dramatic change took place. She became an apostle to the Apostles, filled with His Spirit, for she knew the struggle of sin and the power of Jesus.

Because of her experience with evil, Magdalene focused solely on Jesus. When He came to visit, she concentrated only on His presence. She, a sinner, became a saint. Can this happen to us, too?

When the Lord “visits” us, one thing is essential: Jesus. He comes to us, not as a guest, but as the Host. He takes us out of our comforts, breaking us free from our sins. He, too, wants to strip us of our fears, worries, and despair and give us courage to fight vices, hope to continue fighting, and peace to enjoy. Yet, Jesus cannot do this if we do not stop, listen, and learn from Him constantly.

Jesus is indispensable. He is the quintessence of life. Without Him, our lives are in rags. Running around taking care of so many business concerns, our souls starve. Like empty vessels, we are void and never take the time to fill ourselves up with the Divine Presence.

To break out of our disordered thinking, Jesus comes into our lives. By making us wait, trying our patience, allowing things to break down, health issues to arise, financial concerns to worry us, plans to fail, and a host of other disruptions all designed to make us stop, think, listen, and ask: What am I supposed to learn from this?

Now it’s my turn to get my priorities right. Do I accept the divine invitation of my host, Jesus, who comes to my home to make His dwelling with me? Or do I overlook His invitation and busy myself with other concerns, and miss my Divine Visitation? Do I pray? Do I receive Him in Holy Communion?

Pic: Ethiopian Annunciation. 

Aug 7 Thu - Why do we hear, This Mass is offered for…?

 

Aug 7 Thu
Why do we hear, This Mass is offered for…?

Two notions that have fallen into eclipse: that of the Mass as sacrifice and the concept of suffrages.

How many times do Catholics hear that ritual phrase announcing the intention for the Mass, usually for “the repose of the soul of…?”

The problem with ritual phrases is that they sometimes become white noise: routine enough to be expected without notice but not thought about too often.

Do we understand what “to offer Mass” means? To what extent might the focus on the horizontal Church (the local assembly), blur the focus on the vertical: the offering to God?”

Why are the “Four Last Things” reduced to two: death and Heaven? If we rarely, if ever, talk about judgment and purgatory (much less Hell), then why would we expect Catholics raised in such a milieu to find anything really necessary about suffrages?

Many think that “this Mass is offered for” X refers to what the priest is doing. Meanwhile, what are the Catholics doing in the pews?

Vatican II established consciously “full and active participation” as the norm for all Catholics in the liturgy.

How could they, as members of the common priesthood of the faithful, offer and take part liturgically in a full and active way, if the idea of “sacrifice” is absent?

These are not rhetorical questions. I remember once, just before Confirmation, the priest giving me a penance of “offer Mass” that Sunday for such and such an intention. I had no idea what he was talking about and, therefore, how to perform my penance. He explained about forming an “intention,” i.e., that I was asking God in this Mass to bless X and help him through Jesus’ sacrifice. 

Two elements of the theology of the Eucharist should be recapped: the idea that the Mass makes present Christ’s “sacrifice” and the importance of suffrages for the dead.

The participation in the Eucharistic liturgy for the intention of X should presuppose some basic understanding of sacrifice: how what we’re doing here and now relates to Christ’s Self-Offering and its application for this particular intention. 

After all, if the common priesthood of a faithful enables him to “offer” the Mass, he needs at least a rough outline to know what he is doing. His “offering” cannot simply mean his presence, because Vatican II seemed to demand more than a “check-in” at the “essential” parts of Mass. His “offering” is a share in Christ’s priesthood. 

Some might try to downplay the very idea of Mass “for the intention of,” dismissing it as a too-exclusively individualistic approach. Yet Christ’s infinite merits extend to intentions beyond the one made explicit for this Mass. But our tradition also recognizes the practice of praying explicitly for a specific intention. That concept should not be lost.

Even on Vatican II’s terms for liturgical participation—full and active—the contemporary Catholic seems handicapped unless he recovers two notions that have unfortunately fallen into eclipse: that of Eucharist as sacrifice and of suffrages for the souls in Purgatory. Otherwise, we talk about “offering” the Mass without really understanding what we are talking about.

Excerpts from John M. Grondelski