CONTEMPLATE THINGS OF THE SPIRIT

To be removed from things of the senses is to contemplate things of the spirit.

-- St. John Climacus

"My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever," says the LORD (Isa 59:21).

God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline (2 Tim 1:7). You did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father" (Rom 8:15).

He, the Spirit of truth, will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come (Jn 16:13). It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption (1 Cor 1:30).

The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him--the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD (Isa 11:12).

Glorious Father, give me the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that I may know you better (Eph 1:17). I pray also that the eyes of my heart may be enlightened in order that I may know the hope to which you have called me, the riches of your glorious inheritance in the saints (Eph 1:18). All these I humbly ask and pray in Jesus Name. Amen.

GRACE OF GOD

If we have obtained the grace of God, none shall prevail against us, but we shall be stronger than all who oppose us.

-- St John Chrysostom

ATTACHMENTS

Before you receive Jesus Christ, you should remove from your heart all worldly attachments which you know to be displeasing to Him.
-- St. Augustine

WEALTH

All the wealth in the world 
cannot be compared 
with the happiness of living together 
happily united.

-- Blessed Margaret d'Youville

ANGER

Do you ask how to resist anger? 

As soon as you feel the slightest resentment, gather together your powers, not hastily or impetuously, but gently and seriously.

For as in some law courts, the criers make more noise in their efforts to preserve quiet than those they seek to still, so, if we are impestuous in our attempts to restrain our anger, we cause greater discomposure in our hearts than before; and once thrown off its balance, the heart is no longer its own master.

-- St. Francis de Sales

LEARN YOUR DUTIES

A father thinks that it is quite enough to maintain good order in his house; he will not have anyone swearing or using obscene words. That is very good. But he has no scruple about allowing his boys to go to amusements, to fairs, and all sorts of pleasures. This same father permits work to be done on Sundays on the slightest pretext. However, you see him in church adoring God. Carry on my poor friend, you are blind. Do you not see that you are doing the work of Pontius Pilate, who recognized Jesus Christ and then condemned Him. Go and learn your duties, then you may come to offer your prayers to God.

-- St. John Vianney

VIRTUE OF PURITY

No, my dear brethren, this gracious virtue of purity is not known to those young men whose eyes and hands are defiled by glances and...Oh God, how many souls does this sin drag down to Hell...This beautiful virtue is not known to those worldly and corrupt girls who make so many preparations and take so many cares to draw the eyes of the world towards themselves, who by their affected and indecent dress announce publicly that they are evil instruments which hell makes use of to ruin souls--those souls which cost so much in labors and tears and torments to Jesus Christ. Look at them, these misfortunates, and you will see that a thousand devils surround their heads and their breasts. An even more astounding thing to understand is how their mothers endure them in a state unworthy of a Christian. I would tell these mothers they are worth no more than their daughters.

-- St. John Vianney

WORKS OF MERCY

The saints are like the stars.

In his providence Christ conceals them in a hidden place that they may not shine before others when they might wish to do so.

Yet they are always ready to exchange the quiet of contemplation for the works of mercy as soon as they perceive in their heart the invitation of Christ.


-- St Anthony of Padua

QUEENSHIP OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Memorial)

Pius XII established this feast in 1954. But Mary’s queenship has roots in Scripture. At the Annunciation, Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would receive the throne of David and rule forever. At the Visitation, Elizabeth calls Mary “mother of my Lord.” As in all the mysteries of Mary’s life, Mary is closely associated with Jesus: Her queenship is a share in Jesus’ kingship. We can also recall that in the Old Testament the mother of the king has great influence in court.

In the fourth century St. Ephrem called Mary “Lady” and “Queen.” Later Church fathers and doctors continued to use the title. Hymns of the 11th to 13th centuries address Mary as queen: “Hail, Holy Queen,” “Hail, Queen of Heaven,” “Queen of Heaven.” The Dominican rosary and the Franciscan crown as well as numerous invocations in Mary’s litany celebrate her queenship.

The feast is a logical follow-up to the Assumption and is now celebrated on the octave day of that feast. In his encyclical To the Queen of Heaven, Pius XII points out that Mary deserves the title because she is Mother of God, because she is closely associated as the New Eve with Jesus’ redemptive work, because of her preeminent perfection and because of her intercessory power.


Comment:

As St. Paul suggests in Romans 8:28–30, God has predestined human beings from all eternity to share the image of his Son. All the more was Mary predestined to be the mother of Jesus. As Jesus was to be king of all creation, Mary, in dependence on Jesus, was to be queen. All other titles to queenship derive from this eternal intention of God. As Jesus exercised his kingship on earth by serving his Father and his fellow human beings, so did Mary exercise her queenship. As the glorified Jesus remains with us as our king till the end of time (Matthew 28:20), so does Mary, who was assumed into heaven and crowned queen of heaven and earth.

Quote:

“Let the entire body of the faithful pour forth persevering prayer to the Mother of God and Mother of men. Let them implore that she who aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers may now, exalted as she is in heaven above all the saints and angels, intercede with her Son in the fellowship of all the saints. May she do so until all the peoples of the human family, whether they are honored with the name of Christian or whether they still do not know their Savior, are happily gathered together in peace and harmony into the one People of God, for the glory of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity” (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 69).

Source: http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1115

CREATED FOR THE GLORY OF GOD

If you are wise, then, know that you have been created for the glory of God and your own eternal salvation. This is your goal; this is the center of your life; this is the treasure of your heart. May you consider truly good whatever leads you to your goal and truly evil whatever makes you fall away from it.

MERCY TOWARDS OTHERS

Extend your mercy towards others, so that there can be no one in need whom you meet without helping. For what hope is there for us if God should withdraw His Mercy from us?
-- St Vincent de Paul

PERFECTION OF LOVE

Perfection of life is 
the perfection of love. 
For love is 
the life of the soul.


-- St. Francis De Sales



"I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." -- John 17:23

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love (1 John 4:18). Live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Eph. 5:2).

"If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." -- John 14:23

Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us (1 John 3:24). If anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him (1 John 2:5).

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him (1 John 4: 16-17).


"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another." -- John 13:34

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God (1 John 4:7). Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves (Rom. 12:10). Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law (Rom. 13:8). The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Galatians 5:14).

No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us (1 John 4:12).

"The Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father." -- John 16:27

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him (1 John 3:1). This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother (1 John 3:10).


"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." -- Matthew 5:48

Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you (2 Cor. 13:11). And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity (Col. 3:14). Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law (Rom. 13:10).

Pentecost Sunday (Solemnity)

The Spirit of the Lord fills the whole world, and holds all things together 

and knows every word spoken by man, Alleluia. 

Wisdom 1:7

The Church celebrates Pentecost (so called because it is fifty days after Easter Day) as the day on which the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles, gathered in an upper room with Mary, mother of Jesus, "as a mighty, rushing wind", fulfilling Jesus' promise when he "breathed on them", as recorded in John's Gospel (chapter 20).

This event, which marks the beginning of the Church, is recorded in the book of Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2. The 14th century Siennese painting by Duccio illustrates the moment when the Bible says the Spirit descended upon the gathering of Christians in the form of tongues of fire. The liturgical color for Pentecost is red, a reminder of the flames that "rested on them". Another symbol for the Holy Spirit is the dove, usually emmitting golden rays of light.

The Holy Spirit gave the apostles gifts of grace through which they would undertake the evangelical mission of the Church. On the day of Pentecost, the apostles were given the miraculous "gift of tongues" -- so that everyone from every country understood the Christians inspired message of salvation as if the they were hearing it in their own languages. Thousands were converted by the preaching of Peter and the other apostles.

Called Whitsunday (white Sunday) in England, for the white garments worn by confirmands (candidates for Confirmation), Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks, originated as a Jewish festival fifty days (seven weeks) after Passover.

The Solemnity of Pentecost ends the Easter season. After Pentecost, the Easter candle is kept in the baptistery or near the baptismal font, and is lighted only for a baptism. For centuries, the Sundays of the Catholic Church year between Pentecost and Advent were numbered as "after Pentecost". Since the Second Vatican Council, this period is called "Ordinary Time" (the first period of Ordinary Time is that between the Epiphany and Lent). Three Solemnities are celebrated in the weeks immediately following Pentecost: Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi (The Body and Blood of Christ) and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Source: http://www.wf-f.org/Pentecost.html

LOVING GOD

Some torment themselves in seeking means to discover the art of loving God, and do not know - poor creatures.

There is no art or means of loving Him 

but to love those who love Him.

That is, to begin to practice those things which are pleasing to Him. -- St. Francis de Sales

"If you love those who love you, 

what credit is that to you? 

Even 'sinners' love those who love them."

Luke 6:32

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. -- Romans 12:9

Hate evil, you who love the LORD, Who preserves the souls of His godly ones; He delivers them from the hand of the wicked. -- Psalm 97:10

The LORD watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy. -- Psalm 145:20

Love the LORD, all his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. -- Psalm 31:23

Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands. -- Deuteronomy 7:9


God's Promise:

"I love those who love me; And those who diligently seek me will find me. -- Proverbs 8:17

To endow those who love me with wealth, That I may fill their treasuries. -- Proverbs 8:21

The descendants of His servants will inherit it, And those who love His name will dwell in it. -- Psalm 69:36


Prayer

O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, -- Nehemiah 1:5

Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; And let those who love Your salvation say continually, "Let God be magnified." -- Psalm 70:4

Come and show me your mercy, as you do for all who love your name. -- Psalm 119:132

OVERCOME YOUR TEMPTATIONS

Earthly life is a pilgrimage, and as such it is full of temptations. But our spiritual growth is worked out in temptation.

By experiencing temptations, we know ourselves. By fighting them we have a chance to become winners. By overcoming them, we are crowned victors. 

Lord, you are our physician, healing the ills of all.



 Reflection

The Lord said, "Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Mk 14:38).

When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time. -- Luke 4:13

People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. -- 1 Timothy 6:9

No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. -- 1 Corinthians 10:13

The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, -- 2 Peter 2:9

"Those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away." -- Luke 8:13

Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: -- Hebrews 3:8, Psalm 95:8

And my temptation which was in my flesh you despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. -- Galatians 4:14

Because you have kept the word of my patience, I also will keep you from the hour of temptation, which shall come on all the world, to try them that dwell on the earth. -- Revelation 3:10

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. -- Galatians 6:1

Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.' -- Matthew 6:13

THE VISITATION

 "Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord."


In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechari'ah and greeted Elizabeth.

And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!

And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord."

And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden. For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. And his mercy is on those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm, he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts, he has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of low degree; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his posterity for ever."

And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home. -- Luke 1:39-56

The Visitation is the visit of Mary with Elizabeth as recorded in the Gospel of Luke 1:39-56. It is also the term for a Christian feast day commemorating this visit, celebrated on 31 May in the West (2 July in calendars of the 1263-1969 period and in the modern regional calendar of Germany) and 30 March in the East.

Mary visits her relative Elizabeth; they are both pregnant. Mary is pregnant with Jesus and Elizabeth is pregnant with John the Baptist.

Mary left Nazareth immediately after the Annunciation and went to Hebron, south of Jerusalem, to attend her cousin Elizabeth. Catholics believe that the purpose of this visit was to bring divine grace to both Elizabeth and her unborn child. Even though he was still in his mother's womb, John became aware of the presence of his Divine Saviour, and leapt for joy as he was cleansed from original sin and filled with divine grace. Elizabeth also responded, and recognised the presence of Jesus. Thus Mary now for the first time exercised her function as mediatrix between God and man. (See external links.). It is also at this point (in response to Elizabeth's remark "And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed [art] thou among women, and blessed [is] the fruit of thy womb. And whence [is] this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed [is] she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord."[1]) that Mary proclaims the Magnificat (My soul doth magnify the Lord), Luke 1:46b–55), for which reason this canticle had traditionally been reserved for this feast day.

In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, the Visitation is the second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary.


This is a fairly late feast, going back only to the 13th or 14th century. It was established widely throughout the Church to pray for unity. The present date of celebration was set in 1969 in order to follow the Annunciation of the Lord (March 25) and precede the Nativity of John the Baptist (June 24).

Like most feasts of Mary, it is closely connected with Jesus and his saving work. The more visible actors in the visitation drama (see Luke 1:39-45) are Mary and Elizabeth. However, Jesus and John the Baptist steal the scene in a hidden way. Jesus makes John leap with joy—the joy of messianic salvation. Elizabeth, in turn, is filled with the Holy Spirit and addresses words of praise to Mary—words that echo down through the ages.

It is helpful to recall that we do not have a journalist’s account of this meeting. Rather, Luke, speaking for the Church, gives a prayerful poet’s rendition of the scene. Elizabeth’s praise of Mary as “the mother of my Lord” can be viewed as the earliest Church’s devotion to Mary. As with all authentic devotion to Mary, Elizabeth’s (the Church’s) words first praise God for what God has done to Mary. Only secondly does she praise Mary for trusting God’s words.

Then comes the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55). Here Mary herself (like the Church) traces all her greatness to God.

One of the invocations in Mary’s litany is “Ark of the Covenant.” Like the Ark of the Covenant of old, Mary brings God’s presence into the lives of other people. As David danced before the Ark, John the Baptist leaps for joy. As the Ark helped to unite the 12 tribes of Israel by being placed in David’s capital, so Mary has the power to unite all Christians in her Son. At times, devotion to Mary may have occasioned some divisiveness, but we can hope that authentic devotion will lead all to Christ and therefore to one another.

“Moved by charity, therefore, Mary goes to the house of her kinswoman…. While every word of Elizabeth’s is filled with meaning, her final words would seem to have a fundamental importance: ‘And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her from the Lord’ (Luke 1:45). These words can be linked with the title ‘full of grace’ of the angel’s greeting. Both of these texts reveal an essential Mariological content, namely the truth about Mary, who has become really present in the mystery of Christ precisely because she ‘has believed.’ The fullness of grace announced by the angel means the gift of God himself. Mary’s faith, proclaimed by Elizabeth at the visitation, indicates how the Virgin of Nazareth responded to this gift” (Pope John Paul II, The Mother of the Redeemer, 12).

Source:
http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1400

SPIRIT OF LIBERTY

I leave you the spirit of liberty - not that which excludes obedience, for that is the liberty of the flesh; but that which excludes restraint, scruple, and worry. -- St. Francis De Sales

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. -- 2 Corinthians 3:17

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners. -- Isaiah 61:1

Jesus answered them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in the household forever, but a son always remains." -- John 8:34-35

"So if a son frees you, then you will truly be free." -- John 8:34-36

But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. -- Romans 6:22

Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. -- 1 Peter 2:16

For, brothers, you have been called to liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. -- Galatians 5:13

Stand fast therefore in the liberty with which Christ has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. -- Galatians 5:1

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. -- Romans 8:2

St. Bernadine of Siena, OFM Priest (Memorial)

If they don't want to change their ways by any other means, maybe they will change when they're made fools of.

Bernardino of Siena (sometimes Bernardine) (Massa Marittima 8 September 1380 – Aquila, Italy 20 May 1444) was an Italian priest, Franciscan missionary, and Catholic saint.

Saint Bernardino is the patron saint of advertising, communications, compulsive gambling, respiratory problems, any problems involving the chest area. He is the patron saint of Carpi (Italy), the Philippine barangay Kay-Anlog, barangay Tuna in Cardona, Rizal and the diocese of San Bernardino, California. Siena College, a Franciscan Catholic liberal arts college in New York state, was named after him and under his spiritual patronage.

Bernardino was born in 1380 to the noble Albizeschi family in Massa Marittima (Tuscany), a Sienese town of which his father was then governor. Left orphaned at six, he was raised by a pious aunt. On the completion of his education he spent some years in the service of the sick in the hospitals. While he was studying civil and canon law in Siena, he worked in the hospital of Santa Maria della Scala throughout the bubonic plague outbreak of 1400 and even urged other young men to stay and help. He thus caught the plague, of which he nearly died. In 1403 he joined the Observant branch of the Order of Friars Minor, with a strict observance of Francis' Rule. He was ordained a priest in 1404 and was commissioned as a preacher in 1405.[1]

For more than 30 years, St Bernardino preached all over Italy, and played a great part in the religious revival of the early fifteenth century. His success was claimed to be remarkable. Enormous crowds came to hear him speak. It was said that feuds and factionalism were reconciled by his counsel and that miracles took place. Donations to the Holy Name of Jesus (which he preached particularly) increased dramatically. Furthermore, "bonfires of vanities" were held at his sermon sites, where people were encouraged to burn objects of temptation. In 1425, he preached every day for seven weeks in Siena.

In 1427 he was summoned to Rome to stand trial on charges of heresy, with theologians including Paulus Venetus present to give their opinions. Bernardino was found innocent of heresy, and he impressed Pope Martin V sufficiently that Martin requested he preach in Rome. He was acquitted and thereupon preached every day for 80 days. A typical sermon would last for an hour, but some lasted for more than four. Bernardino's zeal was such that he would prepare up to four drafts of a sermon before starting to speak. That same year, he was offered the bishopric of Siena, but declined in order to maintain his monastic and evangelical activities. In 1431, he toured Tuscany, Lombardy, Romagna, and Ancona before returning to Siena to prevent a war against Florence. Also in 1431, he declined the bishopric of Ferrara, and in 1435 he declined the bishopric of Urbino.

Saint John Capistran was his friend, and Saint James of the Marches was his disciple during these years. Both Pope Martin V and Pope Eugene IV were urged by their cardinals to condemn Bernardino, but both almost instantly acquitted him. A trial at the Council of Basel ended with an acquittal too. The Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund sought Bernardino's counsel and intercession and the future saint accompanied him to Rome in 1433 for his coronation.

Soon thereafter, he withdrew again to Capriola to compose a series of sermons. He resumed his missionary labours in 1436, but was forced to abandon them in the following year, when he became vicar-general of the Observant branch of the Franciscans in Italy. In 1438, Bernardino was elevated to vicar-general of the Franciscan Order in Italy. This cut back his opportunities to preach, but he continued to speak to the public when he could. Having in 1442 persuaded the pope to accept his resignation as vicar-general so that he might give himself more undividedly to preaching, Bernardino again resumed his missionary labours. Despite a Papal Bull issued by Eugene IV in 1443 which charged Bernardino to preach the indulgence for the Crusade against the Turks, there is no record of his having done so. In 1444, notwithstanding his increasing infirmities, Bernardino, desirous that there should be no part of Italy which had not heard his voice, set out to the Kingdom of Naples. He died that year at L'Aquila, in the Abruzzi. According to tradition, his grave continued to leak blood until two factions of the city achieved reconciliation.

Reports of miracles attributed to Bernardino multiplied rapidly and Bernardino was canonized in 1450, only six years after his death, by Pope Nicholas V. His feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is on 20 May, the day of his death.

St. Crispin of Viterbo, Religious (Memorial)

"Let us love God who deserves it!"

Saint Crispin of Viterbo, OFM Cap, (13 November 1668 – 19 May 1750) was an Italian member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.

Crispin was born Pietro Fioretti in Viterbo. When he was five years old, his mother took him to a sanctuary of the Blessed Virgin, a short distance from Viterbo, where she consecrated him to the Mother of God and placed him under her special protection. The child was known for his piety and knowledge of the saints; so that the townsfolk of Viterbo were wont to call him el Santarello, the little saint.

As Crispin one day saw the Capuchin novices walking in procession, he was inspired with the desire to embrace the religious life. He was shortly afterwards received into the Capuchin Franciscan Order as a simple lay brother. Having been employed for some time as cook in the convent at Viterbo, he was sent to Tolfa, a town not far distant from Civitavecchia, to fulfil the same office. From there he was sent to Rome and finally to Albano. Here Crispin was visited by the men of the world, by bishops and cardinals, and even by the pope himself, who always took delight in conversing with the humble lay brother. It was Crispin's constant endeavour to imitate the virtues of his patron, St. Felix of Cantalice, whom he had chosen as his model of perfection at the beginning of his religious life.

Like St Felix, Crispin used to call himself the ass or beast of burden of the Capuchins, and, having on one occasion been asked by a stranger why he went bare-headed, Crispin answered, that "an ass does not wear a hat." Enfeebled by old age and by his numerous austerities, he was sent from Albano to Rome by his superiors, there to end his holy life. His body, which even at the present time is still in a remarkable state of preservation, rests under one of the side altars in the Capuchin church of the Immaculate Conception in Rome.

Saint Crispin was beatified by Pope Pius VII on September 7, 1806 and was the first saint canonized by Pope John Paul II on June 20, 1982.


source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crispin_of_Viterbo

St. Paschal Baylon, OFM, Religious (Memorial)

"I was born poor and am resolved 

to die in poverty and penance."

Saint Paschal Baylon (or Pascal Baylon) (24 May 1540 – 17 May 1592) was a Spanish friar and is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church. He is the patron saint of Eucharistic congresses and Eucharistic associations.

He was born at Torrehermosa, in the Kingdom of Aragon, on 24 May 1540, on the Feast of Pentecost, called in Spain "the Pasch (or "Passover") of the Holy Ghost", whence the name Paschal. His parents, Martin Baylon and Elizabeth Jubera, were poor peasants. He spent his youth as a shepherd. He would carry a book with him and beg passersby to teach him the alphabet and to read, and as he toiled in the fields he would read religious books.

In around 1564, he joined the Reformed Franciscan Order (Alcantarine Reform) as a lay brother. He chose to live in poor monasteries because, he said, "I was born poor and am resolved to die in poverty and penance." He lived a life of poverty and prayer, even praying while working, for the rest of his life.

He was a mystic and contemplative, and he had frequent ecstatic visions. He would spend the night before the altar in prayer many nights. At the same time, he sought to downplay any glory that might come from this piety. He died on May 17, which is his current feast day, in 1592.

His tomb in the Royal Chapel in Villareal in the old province of Valencia, where he died, immediately became an object of pilgrimage. Beatified by Paul V in 1618, he was canonized by Alexander VIII on October 16, 1690. The saint is usually depicted in adoration before a vision of the Eucharist.

Forty years before he was canonized, an indigenous Guatemalan claimed to have had a vision of a sainted Paschal Baylon, appearing as a robed skeleton. This event became the basis of the heterodox tradition of San Pascualito.[1]

Paschal Baylon was enlisted in the Church's struggle against Modernism, part of which was through increasing devotion towards the Sacrament of the Eucharist; Pope Leo XIII[2] proclaimed Saint Paschal Baylon, the "seraph of the Eucharist", Patron of eucharistic congresses and all contemporary and future eucharistic associations. Christian Art usually depicts him wearing the Franciscan habit and bearing a Monstrance, signifying his devotion to the Holy Eucharist.

During the Red Terror at the time of the Spanish Civil War his grave was desecrated and his relics burned by anticlerical leftists.

St. Margaret of Cortona, III Order (Memorial)

"I neither seek nor wish for anything but You, my Lord Jesus." 

Margaret of Cortona (1247 – February 22, 1297) was an Italian penitent of the Third Order of St. Francis. She was born in Laviano, near Perugia, and died in Cortona. She was canonized in 1728.

She is the patron saint of the falsely accused; hoboes; homeless; insane; orphaned; mentally ill; midwives; penitents; single mothers; reformed prostitutes; third children; tramps.

At the age of seven, Margaret's mother died and her father remarried. Little love was shared between stepmother and stepdaughter.[citation needed] At the age of 17 she met a young man, according to some accounts a man named Arsenio, the son of Gugliemo di Pecora, lord of Valiano. She ran away with him. For ten years she lived with him in his house near Montepulciano and bore him a son. She wanted to marry him as promised, but he refused[citation needed].

When Arsenio failed to return home from a journey one day, Margaret became worried[citation needed]. The unaccompanied return of his favourite hound alarmed Margaret, and the hound led her to his murdered body which was located deep in a forest. This crime shocked Margaret into a life of prayer and penance, and Margaret returned all the gifts he had given her and left his home. With her child, she returned to her father's house but her stepmother would not have her. Margaret and son then went to the Friars at Cortona where she put herself in their care at the church of San Francesco in the city. She fasted, avoided meat, and subsisted on bread and vegetables.

After three years, St. Margaret joined the Third Order of St. Francis and chose to live in poverty. Following the example of St. Francis of Assisi, she begged for sustenance and bread. She became a Franciscan tertiary.

In 1277, while in prayer, she heard the words: "What is your wish, poverella (little poor one)?" and she replied: "I neither seek nor wish for anything but You, my Lord Jesus." She began regular communications with God. She asked the city of Cortona to found a hospital for the sick, homeless and impoverished. To secure nurses for the hospital, she instituted a congregation of Tertiary Sisters, known as "le poverelle". She also established a link to Our Lady of Mercy and the members bound themselves to support the hospital and to help the needy.

On several occasions, St. Margaret participated in public affairs. Twice following Divine command, she challenged Msgr. Guglielmo Ubertini Pazzi, Bishop of Arezzo, in which diocese Cortona sat, because he lived like a prince. St. Margaret moved to the ruined Church of St. Basil and spent her remaining years there. She is buried there. After her death, the Church was rebuilt in her honor. St. Margaret was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII on May 16, 1728.

How can I be Perfect?

Daily advance, then, in this love, both by praying and by well doing, that through the help of Him who enjoined it on you, and whose gift it is, it may be nourished and increased, until, being perfected, it render you perfect. -- St. Augustine

"Therefore you are to be perfect, 

as your heavenly Father is perfect."

Matthew 5:48

"If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." -- Matthew 19:21

Search Engine of Mind and Heart

He who does not meditate acts as one who never looks into the mirror and so does not bother to put himself in order, since he can be dirty without knowing it. The person who meditates and turns his thoughts to God who is the mirror of the soul, seeks to know his defects and tries to correct them, moderates himself in his impulses and puts his conscience in order. -- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. -- 2 Corinthians 3:18

Father in heaven, you are the mirror of my soul!

Whenever I fail to put into practice all the words I have received from you, I am easily convicted and my conscience bothers me. This is because your words have become the greatest treasures of my life and only by being a doer of your word will I be blessed.

Please forgive me from all my sins and fill me with the most Holy Spirit so that I may continue to be transformed into the same image of your son, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, in whom you are well pleased.

All these I humbly ask and pray In Jesus Name. Amen.

"Anyone who listens to the word

but does not do what it says 

is like a man who looks at his face 

in a mirror."

James 1:23

Declare His Virtues

Unless you strive after virtues and practice them, you will never grow to be more than dwarfs. -- St. Theresa of Avila

Intensify your Prayer Time

After you have made a decision that is pleasing to God, the Devil may try to make you have second thoughts. Intensify your prayer time, meditation, and good deeds. For if Satan's temptations merely cause you to increase your efforts to grow in holiness, he'll have an incentive to leave you alone. -- St. Ignatius of Loyola

On-Line with God

You go to pray; to become a bonfire, a living flame, giving light and heat.

-- St Josemaria Escriva

Understanding the Truth

O Truth, you are present to those who seek your help, and at one and the same time you answer all, though they seek your counsel on different matters. You respond clearly. but not everyone hears clearly. All ask what they wish, but do not always hear the answer they wish. Your best servant is he who is intent not so much on hearing his petition answered, as rather on willing whatever he hears from you.

-- St. Augustine

SAINT ALPHONSUS LIGUORI

True charity consists in doing good 

to those who do us evil, 

and in thus winning them over.

 
"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you." --Matthew 5:44

"Your Father who is in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. -- Matthew 5:45

"I forgave you all that debt because you besought me; and should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?" -- Matthew 18:32-33

"If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." -- Matthew 5:23-24


Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?

"I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven." -- Matthew 18:21-22

Father in heaven, I pray for all those who have persecuted me. May I finally be reconciled with them so that I may forever be free from this burden. Touch their hearts today as you have touched mine in order to bring about everlasting peace to all those who love you. We are all your children and as such, we should love one another as you have loved us through your son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

In this season of lent, I choose to free myself from any imprisonment of the heart by invoking the power of forgiveness so that the light of love shall shine in me all the days of my life.

All these I lift up to you in prayer, in the mighty name of your son Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you now and forever. Amen.

Behaving towards God

Have you no fear of God, no reverence for him?
Job 15:4

Before prayer, endeavor to realize whose Presence you are approaching, and to whom you are about to speak. We can never fully understand how we ought to behave towards God, before whom the angles tremble. -- St. Teresa of Avila

My office table where I do my daily reading, reflection and prayers were full of things that I have not yet sorted out as I spent my whole weekend cleaning up this room that I occupied for my work and business.

Somehow, I was first moved to clean the table before I started my daily reading, reflection and prayers to my Lord. I did this so that my mind and heart could focused clean and refreshed to my God without catching sight of any disorderly surroundings. Moreover is the reverence I have for my Lord in this place where I seek to communicate with Him in prayer.

After I have set the table right so to speak, I began my first order of the day, and that is to open and set my computer to EWTN's Daily Scriptures.

As I read the message of St. Teresa of Avila, I know that the first acts of work I did of cleaning up before praying is led by the Spirit of the Lord that dwells within me.

God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him. -- Psalm 89:7

Father in heaven, you are my God who is worthy of all praise and thanksgiving!

I offer you my place of work, use it for your glory. Bring glory to the work of my hands for you alone is all I need to bring to fulfillment the wishes and desires of my heart.

May the Spirit of my Lord be always upon me in whatever I say and do for only through Him can I be made pleasing to you.

In Jesus Name, I give you back all the honor as I thank you for all my answered prayers.

Hear the Lord

"Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. 

I knew that thou hearest me always."

John 11:41-42

It is better for a man to be silent and be [a Christian], than to talk and not to be one. It is good to teach, if he who speaks also acts. There is then one Teacher, who spake and it was done; while even those things which He did in silence are worthy of the Father. He who possesses the word of Jesus, is truly able to hear even His very silence, that he may be perfect, and may both act as he speaks, and be recognized by his silence. -- St. Ignatius

If Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness (Romans 8:10).

Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you home into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. (Ezekiel 37:12-13)

So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. I knew that thou hearest me always, but I have said this on account of the people standing by, that they may believe that thou didst send me" (John 11:41-42).

When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Laz'arus, come out."  The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go." Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him;  (John 11:43-45).

"I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land; then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done it, says the LORD" (Ezekiel 37:14).

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit which dwells in you (Romans 8:11).

Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world! (John 11:27)

"I am the resurrection and the life; 

he who believes in me, 

though he die, yet shall he live, 

and whoever lives and believes in me 

shall never die. 

Do you believe this?" 

John 11:25-26

No Fear of Sin

"See, you are well! Sin no more, 

that nothing worse befall you."

John 5:14

Never rise from the table without having given thanks to the Lord. If we act in this way we need have no fear of the wretched sin of gluttony. -- St. Pio of Pietrelcina

There will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing." (Ezekiel 47:12)

Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult. (Psalm 46:2-3).


Father in heaven, please forgive me for I have sinned.

All are going well for me because of the grace and mercy of your son, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Deliver me from sin so that nothing worse shall befall upon me.

I pray for your people especially those who became victims of calamities and wars. Though all these things must come to pass, be in their midst and help them in their times of distress.

Thank you for all the good works that you have done. May you continue to be with me all the time through Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you now and forever. Amen.

God is in the midst of her, 

she shall not be moved; 

God will help her right early.

Psalm 46:5

Care and Guidance for the Young

"Go; your son will live."

John 4:50

The strongest support is provided not only to protect the young from evil, but also to rouse them and attract them more easily and gently to the performance of good works.

Like the twigs of plants, the young are easily influenced, as long as someone works to change their souls. But if they are allowed to grow hard, we know well that the possibility of one day bending them diminishes a great deal and is sometimes utterly lost. -- Saint Joseph Calasanz

There was an official whose son was ill. He went and begged Jesus to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. The official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

Jesus said to him, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe. Go; your son will live."

The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went his way. As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was living. So he asked them the hour when he began to mend, and they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."

The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live"; and he himself believed, and all his household. -- John 4:46-53

No more shall there be in it an infant that lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the child shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed (Isaiah 65:20).

Father in heaven, you are my help and my healer! Your anger is but for a moment, but your favor is for a lifetime! In you, there is always hope for a brighter future and a better tomorrow.

In my prosperity, I shall never be moved. It was you who turned my mourning into dancing and my sorrows into joy.

I humbly offer you my praise and thanksgiving for all the good things you have done in Jesus Name. Amen.

Sing praises to the LORD, 

O you his saints, 

and give thanks 

to his holy name.

Psalm 30:4

Worldly Possessions

"Do you believe in the Son of man?"

John 9:35

The love of worldly possessions is a sort of bird line, which entangles the soul, and prevents it flying to God. -- St. Augustine

Restore my soul O God, and lead me in paths of righteousness for your name's sake (Psalm 23:3).

Christ shall give you Light
Ephesians 5:14

Once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:8-10)

Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is a shame even to speak of the things that they do in secret; but when anything is exposed by the light it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. (Ephesians 5:11-13)

"You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you" 
John 9:37

"Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).

Father in heaven, there is nothing that I want other than you!

I believe in Jesus Christ your son, my Lord and Savior, who makes it all possible for me as a sinner to praise and glorify your name.

Thank you for the abundance of blessings that you continue to provide me. I have begun to see the light of fulfillment for all the wishes and desires of my heart.

With you my God, there is nothing impossible nor there is anything that I should fear. All your works are meant to give me protection and comfort.

Your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in your house for ever.

In Jesus Name I humbly worship and pray. Amen

God Abides in the Soul

God, be merciful to me a sinner!

Luke 18:13

I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:6)

The soul united to God and transformed in him draws from within God a divine breath, much like the most high God himself. And God, abiding in the soul, breathes forth the life of the soul as its exemplar.

This I take to be what Paul meant when he said: because you are children of God, God has sent to the Spirit of his Son into your heart's crying, Abba, Father; this is what takes place in those who have achieved perfection. -- St. John of the Cross

John of the Cross (San Juan de la Cruz) (24 June 1542 – 14 December 1591), born Juan de Yepes Alvarez, was a major figure of the Counter-Reformation, a Spanish mystic, Catholic saint, Carmelite friar and priest, born at Fontiveros, Old Castile.
Saint John of the Cross was a reformer of the Carmelite Order and is considered, along with Saint Teresa of Ávila, as a founder of the Discalced Carmelites. He is also known for his writings. Both his poetry and his studies on the growth of the soul are considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature and one of the peaks of all Spanish literature. He was canonized as a saint in 1726 by Pope Benedict XIII. He is one of the thirty-three Doctors of the Church. When his feast day was inserted into the General Roman Calendar in 1738, it was assigned at first to 24 November, since his date of death was impeded by the then existing octave of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. This obstacle was removed in 1955 and in 1969 his feast day was moved to his date of death, 14 December.

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others:

"Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, `God, I thank thee that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.'

But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, `God, be merciful to me a sinner!'

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."  -- Luke 18: 9 - 14

Father in heaven, you alone are just in all your ways!

I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. I have sinned against you done that which is evil in your sight. Be merciful to me a sinner!

Please do good to me in your good pleasure so that you will delight in my right sacrifices and offerings.

In Jesus Name I humbly pray. Amen.
-- Psalms 51: 3 - 4, 18 - 21

No Extraordinary Thing except to Love God!

"You are not far 

from the kingdom of God."

Mark 12:34

God does not require of us extraordinary things. -- The Cure of Ars

St. Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney. The miracles recorded by his biographers are of three classes:

    * first, the obtaining of money for his charities and food for his orphans;
    * secondly, supernatural knowledge of the past and future;
    * thirdly, healing the sick, especially children.

The greatest miracle of all was his life. He practised mortification from his early youth. And for forty years his food and sleep were insufficient, humanly speaking, to sustain life. And yet he laboured incessantly, with unfailing humility, gentleness, patience, and cheerfulness, until he was more than seventy-three years old.

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things; whoever is discerning, let him know them; for the ways of the LORD are right, and the upright walk in them, but transgressors stumble in them (Hosea 14:9).

There shall be no strange god among you; you shall not bow down to a foreign god. I am the LORD your God, who brought you up. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it (Psalm 81:9-10).

It is I who answer and look after you. From me comes your fruit (Hosea 14:8). In distress you called, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place; I tested you (Psalm 81:7). I relieved your shoulder of the burden; your hands were freed from the basket (Psalm 81:6).

I will heal their faithlessness; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them (Hosea 14:4).

Father in heaven, I love you with all my heart, and with all my soul, and with all my mind, and with all my strength!

Take away all iniquity; accept that which is good and I will render the fruit of my lips. I will say no more, `My God,' to the work of my hands for in you, I have found mercy.
(Hosea 14:2-3).

Give me the grace to love all your people whoever they may be. Create in me a compassionate heart for the poor and the needy. Make me a friend to those who seek your guidance and care.

You are the only One True God for me who keeps me close and near through my Lord Jesus Christ. He makes all things possible for a sinner like me to have access to you.

SAINT ALPHONSUS LIGUORI

 Alphonsus Liguori went to law school at age sixteen, becoming a very well-known lawyer. He was thinking of leaving the profession, and wrote to someone: "My friend, our profession is too full of difficulties and dangers; we lead an unhappy life and run risk of dying an unhappy death. For myself, I will quit this career, which does not suit me; for I wish to secure the salvation of my soul." At the age of twenty-seven, after having lost an important case - the first he had lost in eight years of practicing law - he made a firm resolution to leave the profession of law.

He who does not give up prayer cannot possibly continue to offend God Habitually. Either he will give up prayer, or he will stop sinning. -- St. Alphonsus Liguori


"He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters." --Luke 11:23

"Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people; and walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you." (Jeremiah 7:23)

Harden not your hearts, as on the day when your fathers tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.  (Psalm 95:8-9).

Father in heaven, I come into your presence with thanksgiving with a joyful noise and songs of praise!

In worship, I humbly bow down and kneel before you my Lord, my maker. You are my God and I am the sheep of your hand. I listen to your voice, for you alone is all I need.

With much love and gratitude I pray in Jesus Name. Amen.

SAINT ALPHONSUS LIGUORI

Nothing but self-will 

can separate us from God. 

St. Alphonsus Liguori

"He who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." --Matthew 5:19

I have taught you statutes and ordinances, as the LORD my God commanded me (Deuteronomy 4:5).

"Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them" (Matthew 5:17).

He declares his word, his statutes and ordinances (Psalm 147:19).  He sends forth his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. (Psalm 147:15).

"For truly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the law until all is accomplished" (Matthew 5:18).

Give heed to the statutes and the ordinances which I teach you, and do them; that you may live (Deuteronomy 4:1).  Keep them and do them; for that will be your wisdom and your understanding  (Deuteronomy 4:5).

Take heed, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children  (Deuteronomy 4:9).

Praise the LORD! Praise my God! (Psalm 147:12)

There has never been a God so near to me as you my LORD, whenever I call upon you (Deuteronomy 4:7).

Deal with me according to your word (Psalm 147:20). So righteous is your law, statutes and ordinances which you have set before me this day (Deuteronomy 4:8).

Praise the LORD!

In Jesus Name. Amen.

Life is full of Temptations

"Should not you have had mercy 

on your fellow servant, 

as I had mercy on you?"

Matthew 18:23

We are reduced, brought low everywhere in the world this day because of our sins (Daniel 3:37).

Earthly life is a pilgrimage, and as such it is full of temptations. But our spiritual growth is worked out in temptation. By experiencing temptations, we know ourselves. By fighting them we have a chance to become winners. By overcoming them, we are crowned victors. Lord, you are our physician, healing the ills of all. -- St. Augustine

Good and upright is the LORD; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way (Psalm 25:8-9).

Make me to know thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me, for thou art the God of my salvation; for thee I wait all the day long. (Psalm 25:4-5)

Remember not the sins of my youth, or my transgressions; according to thy steadfast love remember me, for thy goodness' sake, O LORD! (Psalm 25:7)

But with contrite heart and humble spirit let us be received; let our sacrifice be in your presence today as we follow you unreservedly; for those who trust in you cannot be put to shame. (Daniel 3:39-40).

Be mindful of thy mercy, O LORD, and of thy steadfast love, for they have been from of old (Psalm 25:6). Do not take away your mercy from us (Daniel 3:35). Do not let us be put to shame, but deal with us in your kindness and great mercy (Daniel 3:42).

For your name's sake, do not deliver us up forever, or make void your covenant (Daniel 3:34). Deliver us by your wonders, and bring glory to your name, O Lord. (Daniel 3:43)

And now we follow you with our whole heart, we fear you and we pray to you (Daniel 3:41).

In Jesus Name. Amen.

SERVICE OF GOD

These many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command; yet you never gave me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends (Luke 15:29). And he said to him,

"Son, you are always with me, 

and all that is mine is yours. 

It was fitting to make merry and be glad, 

for this your brother was dead, and is alive; 

he was lost, and is found."

Luke 15:31-32

Alas, my dear brethren, the man who lives according to the direction of his passions and abandons the service of God is both unhappy and capable of so little! Put an army of one hundred thousand men around a dead man and let them employ all their power to bring him back to life. No, no, my dear children, he will not come to life again. But let someone who is despised by the world, but who enjoys the friendship of God, command this dead man to take up life again; immediately you will see him arise and walk. We have other proofs of this too. If it were necessary to be wealthy or to be very learned to serve God, a great many people would be unable to do it. But, no, my dear children, extensive learning or great wealth are not at all necessary for the service of God. On the contrary, they are often a very big obstacle to it. Yes, my dear brethren, let us be rich or poor, in whatever state we may be, learned or otherwise, we can please God and save our souls. -- St. John Vianney

God does not retain his anger for ever because he delights in steadfast love (Micah 7:18). He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger for ever (Psalm 103:9). He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor requite us according to our iniquities (Psalm 103:10).

He will again have compassion upon us, he will tread our iniquities under foot. He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. He will show faithfulness and steadfast love, as He had sworn to our fathers from the days of old (Micah 7:19-20).

For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us (Psalm 103:11-12).

I will show them marvelous things. -- Micah 7:15

Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name! -- Psalm 103:1

Who is a God like thee, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? -- Micah 7:18

Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. -- Psalm 103:2-4

Shepherd thy people with thy staff, the flock of thy inheritance, who dwell alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land -- Micah 7:14

Thought that brings Delight

"With God nothing will be impossible."

Luke 1:37

"Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven." -- Isaiah 7:11

The thought follows the look; delight comes after the thought; and consent after delight. -- St. Augustine

Look
"Therefore the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel." -- Isaiah 7:14

Thought
And he came to her and said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be.

Delight
And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there will be no end." -- Luke 1:28-32

Consent
And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. -- Luke 1:38

Then I said, "Lo, I come; in the roll of the book it is written of me; I delight to do thy will, O my God; thy law is within my heart."

I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; lo, I have not restrained my lips, as thou knowest, O LORD. I have not hid thy saving help within my heart, I have spoken of thy faithfulness and thy salvation; I have not concealed thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness from the great congregation.

Do not thou, O LORD, withhold thy mercy from me, let thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness ever preserve me! -- Psalms 40:7-11

Deliver our Souls from Death

"If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, 

neither will they be convinced 

if some one should rise from the dead."

Luke 16:31

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night (Psalm 1:1-2).

The wicked are not so, but are like chaff which the wind drives away (Psalm 1:4). For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish (Psalm 1:6).

The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried; and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, and saw Abraham far off and Laz'arus in his bosom (Luke 16:22-23).

And he said, `Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment' (Luke 16:27-28).

Thus says the LORD: "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm, whose heart turns away from the LORD (Jeremiah 17:5).

In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death. -- Byzantine Liturgy, Troparion, Feast of the Dormition, August 15th

Path of Repentance

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, 

and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Matthew 23:12

A third path of repentance consists of prayer that is fervent, careful and comes from the heart. A fourth path of repentance is almsgiving, whose power is great and far-reaching. A fifth way, moreover, if a man lives a modest humble life, takes away sin. -- St. John Chrysostom

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow (Isaiah 1:16-17).

He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me; to him who orders his way aright I will show the salvation of God! (Psalm 50:23)

Father in heaven, please forgive me for I have sinned.

Though my sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool (Isaiah 1:18).

I hear your word my LORD, and give ear to your teaching my God (Isaiah 1:10). Teach me to be willing and obedient, that I may eat the good of the land (Isaiah 10:19).

Advancement of Spiritual Life

"Give, and it will be given to you; 

good measure, pressed down, 

shaken together, running over, 

will be put into your lap.

For the measure you give 

will be the measure you get back." 

Luke 6:38

In the spiritual life he who does not advance goes backward. It happens as with a boat which always must go ahead. If it stands still the wind blows it back. Fix the time, the length of your meditation, and do not rise from your place until you have finished even at the cost of being crucified. -- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

We thy people, the flock of thy pasture, give thanks to thee for ever; from generation to generation we will recount thy praise (Psalm 79:13).

Die to Oneself

"Judge not, and you will not be judged; 

condemn not, and you will not be condemned; 

forgive, and you will be forgiven."

Luke 6:37

Justice, O Lord, is on your side; we are shamefaced even to this day: because of their treachery toward you. O LORD, we are shamefaced, for having sinned against you. -- Daniel 9:7-8

To be clothed with Jesus Christ it is necessary to die to oneself. That which comes from Satan begins with calmness and ends in storm, indifference, and apathy.  -- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

Yours, O Lord, our God, are compassion and forgiveness! Yet we rebelled against you and paid no heed to your command, O LORD, our God, to live by the law you gave us through your servants the prophets (Daniel 9:9-10).

Do not remember against us the iniquities of our forefathers; let thy compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low (Psalm 79:8).

Let the groans of the prisoners come before thee; according to thy great power preserve those doomed to die! -- Psalm 79:11

Clothed with Jesus Christ

"Be merciful, 

even as your Father is merciful."

Luke 6:36

I prayed to the LORD, my God, and confessed, "Ah, Lord, great and awesome God, you who keep your merciful covenant toward those who love you and observe your commandments! -- Daniel 9:4

The field of battle between God and Satan is the human soul. It is in the soul that the battle rages every moment of life. The soul must give free access to the Lord so that it may be fortified by Him in every respect and with all kinds of weapons; that His light may enlighten it to combat the darkness of error; that it may be clothed with Jesus Christ.  -- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

We have sinned, been wicked and done evil; we have rebelled and departed from your commandments and your laws. We have not obeyed your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name. -- Daniel 9:5-6

Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name; deliver us, and forgive our sins, for thy name's sake! -- Psalm 79:9

Charity introduces us into the Promised Land

"She will bear a son, 

and you shall call his name Jesus, 

for he will save his people from their sins."

Matthew 1:21

Salvation is shown to faith, it is prepared for hope, but it is given only to charity. Faith points out the way to the land of promise as a pillar of fire, hope feeds us with its manna of sweetness, but charity actually introduces us into the Promised Land. -- St. Francis De Sales

The promise to Abraham and his descendants, that they should inherit the world, did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith (Romans 4:13).

That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants -- not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, for he is the father of us all, as it is written, "I have made you the father of many nations" -- in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist (Romans 4:16-17).

In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations; as he had been told, "So shall your descendants be" (Romans 4:18).

That is why his faith was "reckoned to him as righteousness" (Romans 4:22).

Would you build me a house to dwell in? (2 Samuel 7:5)

Let the heavens praise thy wonders, O LORD, thy faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones! (Psalm 89:5)

For thy steadfast love was established for ever, thy faithfulness is firm as the heavens (Psalm 89:2).

Thou hast said, "I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: `I will establish your descendants for ever, and build your throne for all generations'" (Psalm 89:3-4). And I will make him the first-born, the highest of the kings of the earth (Psalm 89:27). I will establish his line for ever and his throne as the days of the heavens (Psalm 89:29).

Am I Better than Others?

"I tell you, unless your righteousness 

exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, 

you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

Matthew 5:20

Believe that others are better than you in the depths of their soul, although outwardly you may appear better than they. -- St. Augustine

But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity and does the same abominable things that the wicked man does, shall he live? None of the righteous deeds which he has done shall be remembered; for the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, he shall die (Ezekiel 18:24).

Out of the depths I cry to thee, O LORD! Lord, hear my voice! Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications!

If thou, O LORD, shouldst mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the LORD more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning (Psalm 130:1-6).

Jesus is our Strength

"Ask, and it will be given you; 

seek, and you will find; 

knock, and it will be opened to you. 

For every one who asks receives, 

and he who seeks finds, 

and to him who knocks 

it will be opened." 

Matthew 7:7-8

On the day I called, thou didst answer me, my strength of soul thou didst increase (Psalm 138:3).

We are at Jesus' disposal. If he wants you to be sick in bed, if he wants you to proclaim His work in the street, if he wants you to clean the toilets all day, that's all right, everything is all right. We must say, "I belong to you. You can do whatever you like." And this ..is our strength, and this is the joy of the Lord. -- Blessed Mother Teresa

The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; thy steadfast love, O LORD, endures for ever. Do not forsake the work of thy hands (Psalm 138:8).

I give thee thanks, O LORD, with my whole heart; before the gods I sing thy praise; I bow down toward thy holy temple and give thanks to thy name for thy steadfast love and thy faithfulness; for thou hast exalted above everything thy name and thy word (Psalm 138:1-2).

God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, blessed are you. Help me, who am alone and have no help but you (Esther C:14). Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou dost preserve my life; thou dost stretch out thy hand against the wrath of my enemies, and thy right hand delivers me (Psalm 138:7). Save us from the hand of our enemies; turn our mourning into gladness and our sorrows into wholeness (Esther C:25).