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.